And Then, Scheherazade TOTALLY Lost Her Head ....

A Tale of 1001 Nights, by Boulanger

Once upon a time there was a Persian king, Shahryar, whose first wife was unfaithful to him. So, in a classic case of overreaction, and to ensure he would never again be cuckolded, Shahryar became a practitioner of serial matrimony (no illicit relationships for him when murder was an option!), ordering each new bride beheaded on the morning following their wedding night ... thus also avoiding the messiness of PMS, Peter Pan syndrome, divorce, alimony and child support ... but I digress.

After dispatching 3000 or so wives (and probably running out of virginal candidates), Shahryar wed the beautiful and intelligent proto-feminist Scheherazade. And Scheherazade, who had enhanced her education by extensively studying history and folklore, proved a seductive spinner of fantastic and wonderful (yet ethically- and morally-instructive) tales such as Aladdin and his magic lamp, Sinbad and Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (whose connection to Shahryar's government is as yet undocumented but still under investigation). It is written that Scheherazade thereby changed her fate, utterly enchanting Shahryar with stories, and stories within stories, woven into a tapestry over 1001 nights, ultimately saving herself and others who would have followed her, from the previously implacable vengeance of Shahryar.

It is generally believed that after such captivating nights of spell-binding tales, Shahryar saw the error of his ways, settled down with Scheherazade and lived happily ever after. Unfortunately, recent research (and extrapolation) indicates to the discerning mind two other possible scenarios: (1) that on the morning after the 1001st night, Shahryar neglected to mention to his sycophants whether or not he had enjoyed the latest tale, or to engage in any discussion thereof, so said sycophants assumed that Scheherazade had failed to entertain the king and dragged her off to her long-delayed appointment with the scimitar; or (2) that Scheherazade, driven to despair after striving mightily to engage the king, but failing to elicit any reciprocal response(s), ran off with the more simpatico sycophant-in-chief and became a Hollywood screenwriter, currently walking picket lines in Los Angeles.

But enough speculation about matters of limited interest ... back to the blog! By now, we all should have roused from our Thanksgiving stupor in eager anticipation of the year-end festivities to come: Chanukah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, the Winter Solstice marking the "rebirth" of the sun, the dawning of a new year (Western or Asian, or both), Boxing Day ... whatever wraps your particular package ....




Winter Solstice

Chestnuts roasting, Jack Frost nipping, Yule logs burning, halls decked, eggs a-nogging, lords a-leaping ... arguably, we have arrived at the best time of year for remembrance and reconnection, for family and friends to gather close once more, for sharing memories and stories and personal thoughts and perspectives ....

Nicki and I hope that in the spirit of the season you will join us here ... that those of you who have already "spoken" will continue to do so, and those who haven't yet will add your own unique voices. Inquiring minds want to know: What do you enjoy most about this season? What are your plans for the holidays? Describe your favorite holiday tradition(s). Tell us about some special gift(s) you have given or received. We really are interested and want to hear from you.

And speaking of unique voices, Guinevere the Druid Goddess is gleefully anticipating the Winter Solstice and scurrying madly hither and yon, gathering wood for a bit of nude dancing around the celebratory bonfire. Perhaps not as thrilling a sight as it might have been once upon a time ... but we won't tell her that ....

)O(

Traditions

Yesterday morning I woke up after having spent a remarkable Halloween evening handing out candy to over a thousand little and not so little Trick or Treaters or in this case Trunk or Treaters. Jim and I had volunteered to be part of a group of over a hundred cars who would bring our vehicles to our church parking lot to give the little spooksters in our community an opportunity to have a safe Halloween. We decorated the bed of Jim's pickup with dancing ghosts and smiling jack o'lanterns, dressed all in black (Jim says we were having a Johnny Cash moment), and proceeded to take our place in the lines. For the next hour we had a steady stream of children and parents passing by. The fact that it was really really cold didn't seem to keep many at home! Happily our twelve year old grandson and his dad joined us and a good time was had by all. It was a treat for us to see all the cute costumes; however, as a grandma I had to cringe to see all the shivering children in flimsy outfits and no coats and the slightly dazed look in the eyes of all the tiny ones. Luckily we ran out of time and candy at about the same time.

I don't have to tell you that this experience was a far cry from what we as children experienced on those Halloween nights of long ago! We can all relate many stories of tricks and treats in that time of innocence and close communities.

When I did wake up the morning after, I was a bit shocked and a little dazed to realize that October, my favorite month, is over and November is here! Someone in the paper today related the astonishment that she felt when overnight, businessess had miraculously transformed from Halloween witches and pumpkins to turkeys and holiday glitter. That can only mean that Christmas shopping is imminent. As much as I love the holiday, I don't love Christmas shopping and that really puts a damper on my Christmas spirit, but somehow I always manage.

Thanksgiving remains one of my favorite times of the year--no shopping for gifts, just great food and good company. During the years that Jim coached basketball, it was traditional to have a basketball tournment during the Thanksgiving holidays, and the first games were held on Thanksgiving Day. Thanksgiving took on a whole new meaning that often did not include the wonderful dinners and family get togethers that we had enjoyed before. I rejoiced that with retirement we returned to a more traditional time. This year it will a little different as we head for Flower Mound to our daughter's house. We have observed that over the years, old traditions have been changed and new traditions have emerged allowing for the blending of multiple families.

Speaking of traditions, I would love to hear about holiday traditions that you and your families have shared over the years. Hearing these stories is a great way to keep up my flagging spirits as I become immersed in the holiday throngs. Over the next few weeks I am also going to try to share ideas that I have been given to keep the holidays less stressful and the focus on the true meaning of our celebrations. I hope you will share, too. This will also help me to re-focus when I forget that it isn't all about shopping!

I also enjoy hearing those memories of Halloween past.

One note, before I close. We have started a new blog for the purpose of sharing information about the upcoming class reunion in Las Vegas. On the right side of this post I have provided a link to the new reunion blog and I hope you will visit it often for new information. You can also check on the previous words "new reunion blog."

I look forward to your sharing of your family traditions and favorite memories.

Nicki