Christmas parades epitomize joy of season
Can you just hardly wait for Franklin County’s Christmas parades to begin?
What is it about parades that makes them so universally loved – and by all ages? Sure, I’m generalizing a little, but it’s just a fact that most anyone will get excited by the idea of a parade – and Christmas parades just might be the best kind of all.
Franklin County’s parades are set for Dec. 3 in Red Bay, Dec. 4 in Vina, Dec. 6 in Russellville and Dec. 13 in Phil Campbell. That’s four opportunities to enjoy the sights and sounds – the blaring sirens, the beat from the bands, the twinkling Christmas lights and more – not to mention four opportunities to see Santa.
Then there’s the magic of candy flying through the air to land at your feet on cold pavement. I don’t know why candy tossed from mittened fingers from a flatbed trailer tastes so much better than candy you buy yourself at the grocery store, but there’s definitely something about it.
The first Christmas parade I remember going to as a child was probably when I was in first grade. The parade route was set to pass right by a Pizza Hut, so my family headed there for an early dinner. Much as I have always loved pizza, I could barely eat for eagerness about the parade. I played with the parmesan shaker on the table, my stomach in knots, peering out the window down the street for the first sign of marchers, fire engines and decorated floats. I strained to hear – was that a siren? Were those jingle bells? Was that melody of “Up On the Housetop?”
It was all too exciting to bear.
Of course, now that I’m older and more mature – nothing has really changed. I still bounce around with childlike glee to see that Christmas processional steadily working its way up the street. I clap and cheer and dart out for candy with the best of them.
I would love to hear your parade memories and might even share them in a future column. Email me at alison.james@fct.wpengine.com if you too are a parade fanatic, and mark your calendar for one – or all four! – of Franklin County’s parades. Maybe I’ll see you there.
