A Lee Parish Christmas

 

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Introduction

This is a very rough draft of a short story for Christmas, and introduces some of my characters from the Paranormal series, Lee Parish Shifters.

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Chapter 1

I was the only person in the church parish hall making an Advent wreath alone. Around me were families with babies, toddlers, small kids, bored teens, grandparents, aunts, and uncles. 

My sister-in-law CarolAnne was home tending to earaches and fever with my young nephews but had suckered me into church this morning. It was just as well, as there wasn’t a single Advent or Christmas decoration in my house.

Reverend Peg stopped and sat down with me, a plate of blue iced cookies and a cup of hot spiced cider put next to my elbow.

“Glad to see you, Delaney. Been a while, and we’ve missed you.” She had a kind, compassionate smile on her face, one I saw a lot these days.

“CarolAnne sends her best, Peg. One of her boys has an ear infection again and spiked a fever last night. I’m taking a couple of kits for her and the kids to do.”

“I’m so sorry. Single parenthood is hard enough without dealing with sick kids alone.” She watched my hands as I twisted the pine boughs into a circle and bound them with green florist wire. The scents of fresh greenery, spices, and baked cookies filled the big room and made me happy.

“You do that well. Want to join the Flower Guild?” 

I glanced at her and took in the suppressed giggle behind her grin. “Mamaw might have been into it, especially since she owned the flower shop, but I worked for her too long as a teenager.” I glanced up from my pinesap sticky hands and smiled back. “Thanks for trying, though.”

“I won’t give up easily; you know that. You have a place here.” She turned and beamed as her husband Toby walked up. He kissed her cheek, gave her shoulder a meaningful squeeze, and surveyed my wreath.

“Nice one, Del. Will you do ours?” He held up an oval-shaped mess of pine needles and ribbon. “It keeps falling apart.”

I took it from him and in a few minutes handed it back, purple ribbon entwined the boughs and around the candle cups.

"How do you do that?" He mused and carefully examined it. "Now it looks like something from one of Peg's magazines."

I shrugged. "Years of practice, I guess. Mamaw trained me well."

Peg stood up. "Guess I should visit with the rest of my parish, but I hope you'll start coming again now it's Advent. Good time to start some new habits and see old friends."

We exchanged a glance. "The rest of your family, except for CarolAnne, is going to the big Episcopal Church just finished in Monroe. I haven't seen them in months."

"Pity. I'll try to come more, Peg. You've been good to us, and we appreciate it." I watched her walk away with her husband, as she made her rounds around the room before they picked up their babies in the nursery. Part of the reason I'd stopped going to church was loneliness. People made room for me in the pews and Sunday School rooms, but I was alone after decades of my family's company. Somehow it made me feel even more lonely and sad, so I stayed home. I finished up my wreath and wrapped the cookies in blue paper napkins for the boys.

 

I picked up chicken Pho on the way back to Leesborough and stopped by CarolAnne’s house, met by Mr. Three Mittens, Rufus' one-eyed cat. Mr. 3, as he was known, tried to trip me every time I walked in my sister-in-law's door. Luckily this time I missed him.

"Chicken Pho, you're a saint, Del. Are you going to stay and eat with us?" CarolAnne was lonely, but she didn't need to nurse a sick kid and entertain me.

"No, I'm headed home. I've got a couple of kiddie Advent crafts for you in the car, plus some coloring pages." I returned with the rest of their things and gave her a hug. "Let me know if you need a run to the pharmacy."

She laughed. "As if. You won't go near that place." Mr. 3 positioned himself between me and the door. "Scat you evil thing." He bit at her toes as she gently pushed him aside. "Better make a run for it before he does something bad."

I gave her a kiss on the cheek and flashed out the door just as the cat went for me. He yowled as CarolAnne picked him up and cuddled his body against her. "You are so evil." she purred into his ear.

From inside the safety of my car, I waved goodbye and backed down her drive. She had a small forlorn look on her face before shutting the door.

 

I lived in my grandparents’ house out in the country, a few miles from Leesborough. Papaw had been a physician and needed a haven to get away from his immense practice. They’d filled the house with family heirlooms and antiques until it was a magazine cover worthy showplace. Now it had shingles that were loose, the porch had started to sag and decay, and the white paint was gray.

I parked out by the empty barn and went in through the screened in back porch, just dodging the screen door as it finally gave up and let go of the doorframe. My hands were full with my share of the chicken Pho and my Advent wreath, so there was no stopping the door from falling into the empty flowerbed.

I was glad Reverend Peg wasn’t there to hear me swearing.

There were tracks in the dusty covered porch. Mine, little animals, and some that looked like bigger, scarier things like a wolf or coyote. I put the takeout sack on the worn out doormat and fished my house key out.

The kitchen light flared on, and I set the wreath and sack on the bare countertop.

“Glad you got yourself something to eat, Del. You’re getting too skinny.” My Mamaw looked over my shoulder, looking wispy and pale gray. “I wish I could smell. That looks pretty good.” She drifted behind me as I took my takeout bowl and sat on the front steps. Papaw was already out there, thoughtfully smoking his pipe and surveying the woods around us.

I smiled at him. There was no point to try to kiss him since he was just a cluster of wisps too, but the urge was there.

“How was the church?” He took his pipe out and relit it with a vintage lighter.

“Nice. It’s nice to see people home for Thanksgiving, see all the kids getting older, or bringing their families back to visit. I made a wreath for CarolAnne and took the supplies over for the kids to make their kiddie one. Rufus is sick with an earache.”

“Poor lamb.” Mamaw sat down next to me, crossing her ankles gracefully and waved away Papaw’s pipe smoke. I guess spectral pipe smoke is annoying to ghosts. “All this constant weather change doesn’t help. First it’s cold, and then it’s hot again, and then it rains. Everyone gets sick.”

“Yep.” It was hard to avoid slurping my Pho, but it was so good.

“I’m sorry you have nowhere to eat in the house, Delaney. Your sister and her brood shouldn’t have taken all the furniture. The everything.” Papaw drew on his pipe and blew the smoke away from us. “When I made her executor, I’d never thought she’d do such a thing.”

“It’s done, Papaw. At least I have a roof over my head.” I took another slurp and ignored the reaction from my lady-like Mamaw.

“But she didn’t even leave you a spoon. A towel. After what your ex-husband did to you, I thought she’d have more compassion.”

I put the empty bowl and plastic utensils down next to me on the steps and hugged my knees. “It’s okay. Done. I’ve found some things at Goodwill, and there’s nothing that can’t be replaced.”

“But even your baby pictures?”

“I can’t spend any more time thinking about it, Papaw. It’s done. I can make new memories with CarolAnne and her boys. They’re all the family I need.”

We sat in silence, listened to the wind moving the tall pine trees that surrounded the house. I looked up and watched the tree tops sway while glimpses of sunlight broke in between.

“So peaceful here.”

My grandparents nodded, lost in thought.

“Mrs. Robertson from work is giving me some furniture from her storage unit. Her youngest son was moving to California and left a bunch of Ikea things he doesn’t want anymore. Her husband’s bringing them this afternoon.”

“That’s very kind f them.” Mamaw shifted and turned to give me a smile. “At least now you won’t be sleeping on the floor.”

“I have a mattress, Mamaw.”

She shook her head. “An inflatable mattress from the sporting goods store doesn’t count. I don’t know why you haven’t gotten sick too.”

“I’m just fine.” I laughed, but it sounded forced and unnatural.

“It’s always been funny to me how sometimes strangers can be kinder than relatives.” Papaw studied his pipe.

“I changed the subject, so let’s think happy thoughts, okay?”

 

 

Evening comes quick in late November and early December. My security lights flipped on and illuminated the entire front of the house when Mr. Robertson drove up with his massive pickup truck. He had his ancient German Shepherd, Rusty, riding shotgun, and his oldest son John there to help unload.

“Hey, Miss Del,” Peter Robertson gave me a huge smile and gestured to the tarp covered cargo area of his truck. “We brought ya a few things. Missy said you’d take ‘em off our hands.”

“Yes, thanks, Pete. You two are life savers.”

“Where are we gonna bring ‘em in?”

“Through the front’s best, I think. I’ll prop the screen door and front door open.” Rusty waddled over and rubbed his head against my leg. “How’s my fella? How’s my fella?” He sat on his haunches and let me scratch behind his ears.

Rusty followed me in the house as I propped doors and switched on lights. The men unloaded the truck bed into the yard and began hauling pieces of furniture into the house. They stopped and put an entertainment center down, and Pete gazed around the room. Then John. They exchanged a look, and Pete cleared his throat.

“Where do you want this, honey.” His voice sounded a little hoarse.

Please, not the pity. Through here would be great.” They grabbed up the piece and followed me into the empty den and put it down where the outline of previous things still showed in the paint.

“You gotta TV?” We could move it here for ya.”

I shook my head. “I don’t watch TV too much, Pete.”

“Okay, darlin’. Let’s go git some more, son.” He gestured towards John, who looked about curiously, and the two large men trudged back out the front.

Half an hour later the truck and yard were empty of furniture, and we had a beer in the kitchen.

“Honey, you don’t even have a ‘fridge.”

“I’m shopping for one, Pete. I want to repaint the walls and cabinets before I buy one, maybe tile the floor.”

“Uhuh.” His voice was thoughtful. “That would spruce up things a bit.” He finished his beer and put it into the parish recycling bin on the back porch. “John, we need to head home before your mama has a conniption.” He turned to me at the front door. “You need anything, Del. You just holler, and we’ll be here, okay?”

“Thanks, Pete. You’re sweet.” I gave him and his shy son each a hug and watched as they drove out towards the parish road.

“There goes two good men.” My Papaw stood next to me on the front steps as the taillights disappeared around a bend.

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