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Macella's Corner While I Lives Go On


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are hurtling towards the dreaded holiday season. I avoid it as best I can as I know the next new year is not far in front of that and it will mean another birthday for all of us which will mean we are another year older, ALREADY. Charlie and I escaped to Europe (OK,


full disclosure, and the Bahamas!) during the Thanksgiving holiday, but there is just really no way to give the spirit of Christ- mas early thing the slip. We do everything in our power to try minimizing the com- mercialism and materialism of the holiday season and let Christmas be special, but it just never works. We are inundated with Jungle Bells when the only sound should be that of the gobble of the Thanksgiving turkey, and certainly not with the shrieking of Halloween scare movies. Thanks to the creative efforts of our cli-


ent Jean Edwards, the very inventive barn holiday parties are most frequently held at her beautiful home and feature everything


ust like that, the 2011 show year was over for us. For someone like myself who gets cranky when Starbucks starts serving coffee in Christmas cups before Halloween, this is not good news. It means we


from magicians, to Palm Readers, to an actual costume party one year. The tradi- tion is similar to many barn get togethers where the best part is everyone bringing their favorite dish for an incredible pot- luck. There is something about the pot- luck that brings people together in a very unique way. This year is a bit different for some rea-


son and we've combined the Christmas party with a fun celebration for all the Sag- ittarius birthdays! There is always plenty of music, starting with occasionally off key caroling before the music moves on to include our farrier's rock and roll band, no matter the music taste there is something for everyone. A custom for us that truly fulfills the


by Macella O'Neill


mas tractor parade downtown. Since it's hard to be a contributing member of a community when we travel so much, we do try to attend the neighborhood Christ- mas parties and savor other people's very different lives. Outside our insulated horseshow world


Christmas joy is the barn, as a whole, choosing favorite charities to donate time and money to instead of exchanging gifts. Many of the Diamond Mountain family participate in serving or delivering meals to people who would not otherwise re- ceive them. Spending the holidays that way is about as rewarding as it can get in the giving spirit of the season. Surprisingly this year we're even threat- ened to participate in the annual Christ-


there is a great deal of turmoil and strife right now. The issues that have sent thou- sands of our fellow Americans to the streets in various Occupy movements in cities all over this country are issues that affect us all. While we go along like the horse show world is real life, people are out there in the reality of it taking a stand for us to have the life we chose to live with these horses and our friends. Please take a moment as the New Year starts to quietly appreciate the fact that other people fight for our rights in so many ways. During the break in the year that the


holidays comprise, take the time to ask people how they feel and what they think about topics of interest or direct concern to you, and get some new perspectives. Write a letter, make a donation, and vol- unteer your time, all in the spirit of giving and generosity that I think we all know the holidays should be.


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