Page 42 - Voices-2021-12

FIELD NOTES

St. Nick’s Helpers and the Christmas Chicken

Jane Marshall PM1

We were living in a two-story cabin in Colorado, illustration with round eddies transformed into
at 8200 ft—a lodge really, built in 1928. There small ice skating ponds, framed by swooping
were 5 acres of woods sloping up the back and a limbs laced with feathery snow and red rose

meandering creek 25 feet from the front door. hip ornaments.
In the spring, at times, the creek would It was one of these snowy muted wintery
become a raging river days, while playing on the creek, my children
and in the winter saw “the brown box man” cross our bridge. He

it turned to magic! was bringing us a truckload of giant packages
Like a Tasha Tudor from my mother-in-law whose joy at Christmas
time was to send as many gifts as she could for
her grandchildren.

We were striving to live a minimal,
sustainable lifestyle in the woods—playing
and schooling in the outdoors, spending our
afternoons doing practical things like making

wooden boats to float on the creek and playing
with homemade maple seed forest fairies
who lived under exposed tree roots in
woodland villages.

Grandma, meanwhile, was shopping
her heart out year round for the latest and
greatest from FAO Schwartz-NYC, and
the Southern California malls where

she lived.
With multiple gifts for 7 children,
the humble cabin living room
transformed into a “glorious”

scene from a shopping mall.
(Like a Visit Santa display).
The massive amount of gifts
towered over our Charlie

42 ONE COMMUNITY