When my friend E suggested we go caroling, I loved the idea, but feared it would be one of those things that we talk about doing, but never actually do. Oh how I underestimated E's powers of persuasion. While many people wanted to come but could not due to previous engagements, we did get a group of 15 people or so to go out. It tickled me to no end that there were two small little ones, and 5 teenage or preteen girls among our group, what a great tradition to start with them!
We drove to a couple of special stops, one the grandmother of one of the carolers,
and another was a family celebration for one of her friends. In the second case, one of the family members was going in for surgery, so the whole family gathered to celebrate Christmas early. They were so touched that we visited them.
After that, we headed to town. It was clear that people were not used to people singing and spreading cheer. We had several instances where people closed blinds, shut off porch lights, and retreated deeper into their homes. But many people were quite happy to come out and hear our singing. And one house even gave us cookies.
We may have been off key, and some people may have thought us a nuisance, but I hope, no, I know, that we succeeded in spreading cheer to quite a few people. And next will be even bigger and better.
