The False Ducks Blahg

      Wow, it’s almost Christmas and I’m going to try to sneak in this blahg. It’s been a long five weeks since my last post. Today is not going to be a new full blahg.  I’ve been really busy this past couple of months and I’ve been trying to spend as much time with my family as I can.  I’ve also started to write fiction again and I’ll share some of that a little later on in this blahg.  Right now, I have 30 minutes before I have to be out the door to a meeting so I’m going to try and get a good start on all of this. 

     First, let me show you my Christmas yard display for this year.  I’ve taken several night photos of the display from right to left or left to right (depending on how you look at it) as well as photos of the front and side of my house.  We have lots of snow right now so they look very nice. 

      Now, before I move on to other things, I want to share a quick update on my cat Frank and a very cute photo of Frank & Zoey.  I mentioned in a previous blahg that Frank had been sick with a blood parasite and his blood counts were very low and he had lost weight.  A subsequent visit showed that he was responding to his medicine and his levels were getting better and he had gained weight again.  Last week, however, Frank began to be very listless and we were worried about his health again.  It turned out he was fine and just needed another dose of his medicine that had run out.  Our kitten Zoey must have sensed that as she curled up with Frank on this cat couch a friend had given us.  It’s a very cute picture and could easily be the front of a Christmas card.  Click the picture (or any of the pictures in this blahg) to view a bigger picture.

      This blahg is not going to be very lengthy but will have lots of photos, a couple of videos, and some music.  First, it’s a prime viewing time for Christmas movies and specials and I had originally thought of doing a blahg about my favorite Christmas cartoons but then the videos I tried to upload to Youtube were too long or too large or something technical.  I did find some links to my two favorites so I’m going to post those below. 

     First up is, “The Wish That Changed Christmas” from 1991.  It’s based on a book I used to read to my daughter, Abbie, called “The Story of Holly & Ivy” by Rumer Godden.  It tells the story of a little orphan girl named Ivy that wants a grandmother for Christmas and how a beautiful Christmas doll named Holly helps her wish come true.  Check it out below:

     Next up is, “The Bear Who Slept Through Christmas” from 1973. I know there is a book of this by John Barrett but I’m not sure if the book or the cartoon came first.  It features the voices of Tommy Smothers, Barabara Feldon, and Arte Johnson.  It’s the story of a real bear who wants to find out what this thing called Christmas is and he sets out to find it.  It’s a great story.  Hopefully the link below is still active because it’s not easy to find.

     I also like to listen to a wide variety of Christmas songs by a variety of different artists.  I thought I would share a couple of songs you probably never heard before.  The first is “Dasher with the light upon his tail.”  This is by Kitty Wells and I heard it years ago on a Campbellford, Ontario radio station and have never heard it since.  If you thought Rudolph was the only reindeer immortalized in song then you’d be wrong.  Give it a listen: 

     Now get ready to Boogie with Pattie Page.  I originally had the song “Boogie Woogie Santa Claus” on an old 78rpm record but have since downloaded a digital copy.  It sounds better and it’s a fun song that I like to hear every year. 

     This is the end of my video and audio offerings but not the end of my written output for you in this Christmas 2013 blahg.  I thought I would close with the first ever publication of my new Christmas short story.  I haven’t written a piece of fiction in over six years and I had this idea bouncing around in my head and I thought it would be a great short story.  Not much of a ‘short’ story though because it runs more than 24 pages in Microsoft Word and more than 11,000 words.  Still, I’m fairly happy with it and want to share it here for the first time.  Hopefully it won’t max out this blahg and will be readable here.  Hopefully you find some enjoyment in it and that your Holiday season in 2013 and 2014 is enjoyable.  A couple of years ago, I closed my year end blahg with a quote from Frank Sinatra and it’s still just as relevant.  After wishing everyone health and hugging and kissing, Sinatra would always close with “In the next year may we find peace in the world and peace among ourselves.” 

THE FLASH MOB CHRISTMAS EXPERIENCE

by Scott Henderson

            It started with a chord.  No, that’s not exactly right.  It actually started with a boy named Chord and even that isn’t entirely correct.  This particular boy wasn’t even a boy and he didn’t spell his name CHORD.  This boy was really a teenager aged 17 and he spelled his name CORD.  Of course that wasn’t how it was spelled on any official document but he preferred it that way.

            Now if you look up the meaning of the name Cord, which was the way he preferred to spell it, you will get a pretty good description of this teenaged Cord.  People with this name have a deep inner desire for a stable, loving family or community, and a need to work with others and to be appreciated.  People with this name tend to be a powerful force to all whose lives they touch. They are capable, charismatic leaders who often undertake large endeavors with great success.  All this was true of the teenaged Cord who started it all.

            Saying that it started with Cord, still is not entirely accurate.  There were others involved.  There was also his sister Melody.  Melody was 13 and had just started at the same high-school as Cord.  Most often she was known as Cord’s sister.  It was tough living in his shadow.  She hadn’t found out really who she was supposed to be.  She knew she was more than just Cord’s sister and given the chance, and the knowledge of what she really wanted to do with herself, she would show everyone she was her own person.        If you can a see a theme in Cord and Melody’s names here then you have to include their parents.  It probably really started with them.  Mom was a music teacher and the biggest influence for the naming of the children.  She also instilled a sense of the value of music.  She played piano beautifully and gave piano lessons.  Unfortunately, neither of her children played the piano.  That was their mother’s scene and Cord preferred the guitar and Melody took up the flute.  Mom always played the piano at home, when she wasn’t giving lessons, and her tastes varied from the classics she taught to some of the more contemporary songs.  Unfortunately Mom’s contemporary songs seemed to stop somewhere in late 1980s.

            Dad should not be left out of all of this.  He was musically inclined as well.  He played the trumpet.  In College he even started a Dixieland jazz band called The Pick-Up Six.  The name of the band was a parody on the old pick-up sticks game and a pick-up band.  The definition of a pick-up band is one that is hired to play for a limited time period—ranging from a single concert or recording to several weeks of shows—before disbanding.  That was pretty much The Pick-Up Six.  Besides Dad on the trumpet, there was a trombone, a clarinet, drums, a piano, and a string bass.  Those last three instruments made it much harder for the band to be a pick-up band because the drums, the piano, and the string bass were not easily portable.  The name of the band also took on another significance because one of the band members had access to a pick-up truck.  Their engagements were limited to venues with a piano and their transportation limited to that old truck with three members piled in the front cab and the remaining three piled in the back with the instruments.  The Pick-Up Six played a few shows around the college and in neighbouring towns and after a few months, like the pick-up band definition, they disbanded.  The break-up was more to the loss of the pick-up track when it became no longer road worthy.  Still, you could hear dad, on the odd night, in the garage, playing a trumpet solo on “The Saints Go Marching In” or “Down by the Riverside”.  Glory days gone but not the music.

            Getting back to Cord, with whom this mostly all started, he was an involved teenager.   Again, definitions can be a good thing because an involved person is a complicated person or a person who belong and is connected by participation or association.  That last definition was Cord.

            Cord belonged.  That’s the short description you could give to Cord.  He belonged.  He belonged to everyone.  Everyone liked Cord.  He also belonged to various school groups.  He was in the drama club.  He was in the school band.  He participated in the school plays and musicals and was part of the theater group at the school that oversaw production, lighting, sound, and just about anything that went on in front or behind the curtain.  Cord belonged.

            If it happened at school, Cord was part of it.  He was also plugged in.  He communicated through social media websites like Facebook and Twitter.  He sent texts to friends.  That was just a small part of his life.  These were just platforms for him to let others know what was happening or what he was thinking.  He never used these mediums to attack or insult anyone.  That wasn’t Cord.  He only talked about what was important and he didn’t rant or ramble.  Often he was a man of few words and more often a man of his word.  If Cord said something, most often, others listened.

            It started with Cord…and Christmas.

…

            Cord came into the house Saturday afternoon, flopped down on the couch, and grunted.  His only other act was to have kicked off his shoes inside the back door.  He didn’t both to take off his coat and his hood was pulled up to hide his face…and his disgust.

            “I’ll bite,” said his mother, coming in from the dining room which also housed the piano where she gave lessons, “what’s up?”

            Cord just spread out on the couch with his face buried in a cushion and grunted again.

            “Is that so?” Mom said.  It really wasn’t a question.  “Can you provide a few more details or am I to guess everything from that great little clue?”

            Cord lifted his head slightly, whipped back his hood, and glared.

            “Well that helps narrow it down,” Mom said.  “Either it’s the end of the world or you ate something that didn’t agree with you.  Seeing as you just came from the Mall, it could have been that cardboard pizza they serve at Pizza Joe’s.  You know, I don’t even know why they call it Pizza Joe’s.  You don’t really associate Pizza with such a domestic name like Joe.  Besides, I don’t’ even think there is a Joe.  I’ve never seen anyone but teenaged girls working there.”  Cord could never be accused of rambling but the same couldn’t be said of Mom.

            “Yeah, it was the pizza and the whole stinking Mall and the whole wide world.”  Cord was being his man of few words.

            “I thought we’d bring the world into this,” Mom replied.  “If it’s not the end of the world then what has the world done now?

            “And it’s Christmas, too,” Cord went on without answering Mom’s question.

            “Oh, and now it’s Christmas’s fault as well,” retorted Mom.  “I don’t suppose you had any part to play in this?”

            “Me?” Cord snapped.  He sat up and started to struggle out of his coat.  “Of course it’s about me.  Isn’t it always about me?”

            “Yes, but…”, Mom began before being quickly interrupted.

            “It’s about me because I make it about me. What’s wrong with that?  I’m not asking for much, maybe a simple ‘hello’ or ‘how are you’ or a nod even.  Merry Christmas?  Now, that’s out of the question.”  Cord broke his rule of few words.  It was obvious he was worked up about something,

            Mom didn’t even try to inquire further.  She knew that once Cord got going, which wasn’t often, he’d eventually tell all.

            “Here it is the beginning of December,” Cord continued, “and that Mall and the people in it haven’t got any Christmas spirit.  Sure there are all the decorations and they’ve got Santa there for the little kids but what about the rest of us?”

            “What about the rest of us?” Mom asked.  “You and I are a little big for Santa’s lap.”

            “I know that,” Cord snapped back.  “It’s the commercialism of everything.  Every store has a sale and that’s all they really want you at the Mall for anyway.  Buy this.  Shop there.  Where’s the Christmas experience?”

            “What experience are you expecting?  Do you want a live Nativity?  There’s only so much you can do in that Mall and I don’t think they’ll allow some sheep and a donkey into the Food Court.  And where would you get a camel?”  Mom didn’t realize she wasn’t helping much.

            “Anything would be something!  I just don’t want to be another shopper or someone sipping their high price specialty coffees and comparing their purchases.  There’s not even piped in music!”  Cord flopped back down on the couch again and buried his head in the nearest cushion.

            “Oh”, Mom replied with a start.  “That reminds me, I’m giving a lesson in 15 minutes so I better get ready.  Maybe I’ll work a few Christmas carols into the lesson.  Do you want to stick around and join us on your guitar?  We could all sing along.  It might lift your spirits.”

            Cord lifted his head again.  “No thanks, that’s the last thing I need.  Singing Christmas songs with my Mom and one of her students isn’t my idea of…”  Cord trailed off and jumped quickly to his feet.  Grabbing up his coat, Cord rummaged through the pockets until he found his phone.

            “Singing Christmas songs with my Mom and one of her students isn’t my idea of a good time, I was about to say,” Cord continued, “but it’s a good idea.  Well, maybe half a good idea.”

            Cord grinned back at his mother and his thumbs began flying over his phone.  And that’s how it all started with Cord.

…

            It all started with a text to Cord’s friend Leo.  From there it went out to his friend Flora and then to other friends.  Soon the message was repeated in other texts and in Tweets and on Facebook.  By Monday morning at school more students knew about Cord’s idea than he had originally intended.

            More and more people came up to Cord at school and asked for more details.

            By Wednesday, rumors flooded the halls and the cafeteria.  Those who hadn’t received the texts or read it online soon learned by word of mouth.

            By Thursday, every student knew.

            By Friday, everything that could be finalized was finalized.  Truth be told,

there wasn’t much to finalize and you couldn’t plan spontaneity.

            The idea was simple.  They would be at the Mall on Saturday and at one o’clock everyone would sing “We Wish You A Merry Christmas”.  It would be a flash mob and none of the other shoppers would expect it.

            There were only a few simple details to work out.  Cord and Leo would smuggle in their guitars.  Everyone would spread themselves through the Food Court and when Cord and Leo started to strum, then all voices would join in.

            By Saturday, the scene was set.

            The Mall was one of those double decker establishments.  It had stores on both levels and the Food Court was laid out by the escalators on the first floor.  There was a railing on the second level that overlooked the Food Court and Cord hoped the sound would reach up to people passing above.

            There was an arena next to the Mall and there was always some kind of hockey practice on Saturday.  Cord and Leo didn’t play hockey but they managed to borrow a couple of equipment bags off some friends.  In the bags, they stowed their guitars with a hockey stick hooked along the length of both bags through the handles.  No one would look twice at someone with a hockey bag.  Players were always coming over after practice to sit and eat pizza or grab a burger.

            The idea was to make everything look as inconspicuous as possible until Cord and Leo took out their guitars and began to play.  Then everyone would stand up and begin to sing.  Messages had been sent regarding the time and place and that everyone was to rise to their feet and join in when the singing began.

            Cord, Leo, Flora, and Melody all arrived at the Mall around noon and took up separate tables.  Melody needed some encouragement to participate.  When Cord had first told her about the flash mob idea she wanted no part of it.  She was only a Junior at the high-school and preferred to keep her head down and not draw too much attention to herself.  She didn’t have a reputation yet other than being Cord’s sister.  She wanted to be her own person and shine for who she was; once she figured out who that was.  Eventually she warmed to Cord’s big idea but insisted she be allowed to accompany the boys on her flute.  Cord didn’t go for that because he wanted all of the voices that could be gathered.  Everyone was to sing and Cord and Leo would also play along on their guitars.  Both of them had gathered at Leo’s to rehearse a couple of times.  Melody’s protest for the flute was denied and she reluctantly agreed to join the group on Saturday.

            Munching on a slice from Pizza Joe’s, Cord scanned the Food Court.  He recognized some other students but thought there should have been more.  Perhaps they were milling elsewhere in the Mall and would show up shortly before one o’clock.

            The time came.  Cord signaled Leo and the two of them reached into their borrowed equipment bags and pulled out their guitars.  On another signal, Leo, Flora, and Melody rose in union with Cord.

            Shoppers and people just enjoying their lunch turned with a start when the music from the guitars began.  Suddenly there were voices raised in song.

            Cameras and cell phones began snapping pictures or taking video.  Who would have believed it?  Here at the Mall, was an impromptu display of Christmas spirit.  Two guitars and four voices caroling out “We Wish You A Merry Christmas.”

            Yes, only four voices.  For all of the followers and those who received texts or read posts, only the four voices of Cord, Leo, Melody, and Flora rose above everything at the Mall.

            Cord glanced around while he was singing to try and see who else was there.  Across the Food Court was Leo, on his feet, strumming and singing.  At two other separate tables were Flora and Melody standing and singing.  That was it.  There was no one else.  This was hardly a mob.

            When the song was over, there was a smattering of applause.  Cord and Leo put away their guitars and without a word, gathered together with Melody and Flora, who were just as stunned, and all four left the Mall by the nearest exit.

…

            Cord was disappointed.  He needn’t have been.  His little flash mob was more of a success than he had imagined.

            What Cord hadn’t seen were all of the other students who hadn’t joined in the singing but were there nonetheless.  Some stood just within store entrances or hung back from the Food Court.  Many more were on the second level and leaning over the railing to get a better view.  Cell phones recorded everything and amateur videos were posted online.

            The afternoon news carried a story of the little flash mob scene at the Mall.  Several people had sent videos to the local television station and it quickly became a feel good story sandwiched between the weather and sports highlights.  Cord, Leo, Melody and Flora were not named but close-ups of each of them were spliced together from the various videos.

            “We don’t know who these young people are,” said the anchorperson, “but it’s clear they have the Christmas spirit.”  The story was repeated on the eleven o’clock news and by then, almost everyone knew what had happened at the Mall that day.

            By Monday, there were many apology texts sent to Cord.  The four singers were stopped in the hall and mobbed at the cafeteria.  No one had wanted to embarrass themselves at the Mall but when it became the talk of the town, everyone was sorry they hadn’t been part of it.  Everyone wanted to know when it was going to happen again.  Everyone wanted in.

            Through Cord’s disappointment he hadn’t thought about a repeat performance.  He and Leo were determined to let it lie after the poor turnout.  After the news story and reaction at school, Cord had to give it more thought.  He didn’t dwell on it long.  As much as everyone was getting caught up in the thing, Cord was feeling just a little more pleased with himself.

            During lunch on Tuesday, a large group gathered in the school cafeteria and hung on Cord’s every word.

            “We have to go bigger,” Cord said to the crowd.

            “Go big or go home,” chimed in Leo.

            “No guitars this time.  Everyone will be expecting it.  They’ll be looking for the instruments and anyone carrying any kind of large bag will give it away.”  Cord was thinking this all through out loud.  He wanted everyone to know he was in charge.

            “How about a piano?” someone asked.

            “A piano?” Leo and Cord responded in unison.  “I don’t suppose you’ve got a piano you can conceal in a book bag?”  Cord asked, jokingly.

            “A keyboard, then,” responded the person who had suggested the piano.

            Cord thought about it for a second and then dismissed it.  “You’d still need a big bag or something to hide it.  Besides, we wouldn’t have a power source.”

            “Think small instruments,” Leo offered up.  “They’ve got to be portable.”

            “Like a flute?” Flora asked.

            Cord turned toward Flora.  For half a moment, he thought it had been Melody who had pitched the flute idea.  Being a Junior, however, Melody had a different lunch period.  Cord would have dismissed the flute idea just as he had the piano and keyboard notion but he didn’t have a good reason.  Maybe if Melody had suggested the flute then he might have shot that idea down but she had been a good sport and was one of the original four who had actually participated last Saturday.

            “Maybe we could use a flute but there’s not many of us who can play a flute,” said Cord.  “Hands up, those of you who can play a flute.”

            No other hands went up.  Either the flute players were shy or they weren’t part of this crowd.

            “I’ll talk to Mel about it later.  Any other suggestions?”  Cord looked around the crowd.  It was a good sized group and if most of them showed up next time then it truly would be a flash mob.

            Leo snatched up a piece of pizza from one of the boxes in the middle of the table.  A few of them had tossed some money together and had gone out and brought back pizza from Pizza Jack’s around the corner from the school.  Why was it that all of the pizza joints were named after a mysterious man that no one ever saw?

            “Anyone else want a slice?” Leo asked, waving his about in the air.

            “Yeah, shoot me a triangle,” someone shouted.  It was the same voice who had suggested the piano.

            Cord looked down the table.  “Shoot me a triangle?  Who says shoot me a triangle?  Are you back in primary school or something?”

            “It’s a triangle isn’t it?” shot back the piano man.

            Cord looked at him again but then snapped his fingers and pointed straight at him.  “You may be crazy but I think you just hit on something.”

            Everyone looked at the student at the end of the table and then back at Cord.

            “The triangle, people,” Cord began.  “Who doesn’t remember playing the triangle back in primary school?”

            “I always got stuck with the stupid recorded,” barked Leo.

            Cord ignored his best friend and continued on.  “It doesn’t take skill to play the triangle and it’s easily concealed in a pocket or a small bag.  Besides, it’s just for accompaniment.  It’s about the singing.”

            “Where are we going to get that many triangles?” someone thought to ask.

            “Leave that to me,” replied Cord.  “Just meet back up here tomorrow and I’ll give you more of the plan.  The truth was that Cord had an idea where he was going to get the triangles but not what song they were going to sing.  He had to think on it some more.

…

            After school, with a plan beginning to form in his head, Cord lay part of the plan on his mother.

            “I need some triangles, Mom, as many as you can lay your hands on,” Cord told her.  “You, know the musical instrument kind?”

            Mom didn’t bat an eye.  Ever since Cord’s flash mob at the Mall, she knew her son was up to something.  Since that last Saturday afternoon, the phone hadn’t stopped ringing and every one of her students who had lessons with her that week couldn’t stop talking about it.  Some had been at the Mall, others had heard from others who had been there, and still others were prompted to a video online or saw the highlights on the news.  Mom was at first surprised by Cord’s initiative but gradually became very proud of her son and daughter and their two brave friends.

            “I’ll pull in some favors from some other teachers at the other schools but I don’t see a problem.”  Mom was on board.  “Have you given any thought to what song you’ll perform next?”

            “Well,” Cord began hesitantly, “that leads me to request number two.  Do you have any thought to what song we should perform next?  Keep in mind, we’re aiming for Saturday and we only have a few days to pull this together and it has to be something easily played on the triangle.”

            “What about the flute?”

            Cord turned to see Melody coming in from the kitchen with a couple of Mom’s recently baked Christmas cookies in her hand.

            “I hear you’re going to talk to me about the flute?”  Melody asked.  “Word gets around brother.”

            “About that,” Cord started, “we’re going with triangles now.”

            “I heard all about that but what about my flute solo?” Melody was obviously going to assert herself on the flute issue.

            “Flute solo?  Who said you were getting a flute solo?”  Cord was going to assert himself, too.  This was, after all, his idea.

            “If the flute’s out, then I’m out,” Melody replied.

            “Listen to you two,” said Mom.  “I thought this was all about the spirit of Christmas and giving a little something to others?”  Mothers always went to that handy excuse of giving to others.  Still, the meaning wasn’t lost on her children.

            “Okay, you can have a flute solo,” conceded Cord, “but we need a song for you to solo on.”

            “How about ‘Hark, the Herald Angels Sing’?” Mom asked.  “That’s one of my favorites.

            “Mother!” both Cord and Melody responded.  They could both agree on some things when they tried.

            “I like ‘Do You Hear What I Hear’,” Melody suggested.  “I think there’d be a great spot in there for a solo.”

            “That’s easy enough to sing and you could ring in on the triangle twice after every line,” Mom chimed in.

            Cord liked the idea but he didn’t want to let on too quickly.

            “I’ll think on it.”  And he did.

…

            By the next morning, Cord had thought long and hard on Melody’s idea.  Of course, he had to give it his own spin and add some further complicated parts to it.  On the way to school, he had filled Melody in on his twist on her idea.  Melody liked it and added a few suggestions.  By the time they had reached the school, they had the idea all fleshed out.  Now they just needed to work out the logistics.

            “We’ll need a harness,” Cord explained to the group gathered again in the Cafeteria.

            This did not come as a surprise to the group because it figured into Cord’s plan.  He had told them about the song choice and the flute solo and how they would work in the triangles.  He also explained how it was his idea to do a mash-up of both ‘Do You Hear What I Hear’ and ‘Hark, the Herald Angels Sing.’  He conveniently forgot to give Mom and Melody credit for their song suggestions.  The change over to the second song would be accomplished by having Melody lowered from the second level of the Mall by a cable suspended over the railing.  She would then be lowered to the Food Court while she played her flute solo and the group below would switch over to ‘Hark, the Herald Angels Sing.’

            The whole idea was met with enthusiasm.

            .  “We have a harness in the stage equipment from the time the school put on that production of Peter Pan,” someone from the Stage Crew piped in.  “How much cable do you think we’ll need?”

            “It’s probably twenty feet from that railing to the floor of the Food Court,” Leo explained.

            “Got it,” the member of the Stage Crew replied.

            “My mom’s working on the triangles,” Cord said.  “I should have them all to bring to school on Friday.”

            “Are you sure Melody’s okay with being lowered down on a rope?” Flora asked.

            “Cable, not a rope,” corrected the Stage Crew member.

            “Cable then,” continued Flora.  “Are you sure she’s okay with all of this.”

            “It was her idea,” Cord replied.

            Indeed, it had been her idea.  Melody was finding her way among Cord’s creative experience.  If she was ever going to be anyone but Cord’s sister then she’d have to shine out with her own light.  How better to do that that than to have everyone look up to find where the flute music was coming from and find her being lowered like an angel on high.

            “I want that harness by the end of school today.  I need to check it for size on Melody.  Anyone who doesn’t know the words to the two songs then go home and learn them.  We’ll run them through tomorrow and we’ll work on the triangles on Friday.”  Cord was in his element.  Everyone was looking up to him…at least until Saturday when they’d all be looking up at Melody.

…

            Mom made good on her promise on the triangles.  On Friday, everyone was given a triangle and a metal beater.  The group met in the cafeteria at lunch and after school and worked out the timing of the two songs.  The night before, Leo and Cord had attached small strings of fishing line in a loop on one corner of each triangle.  Mom had given Cord quick instructions on how to hold and properly strike the triangle.  He quickly instructed the others.  It was surprising how much Cord had forgotten about playing the triangle from the few times he’d played one in primary school pageants.

            Mom even went one better than just supplying the triangles.  She managed to whip together a quick angel costume for Melody complete with detachable wings and halo.

            Melody, for her part, rehearsed her flute solo and steeled her nerves against being lowered by cable from the second level of the Mall.  Dangling from a cable could not be rehearsed but the harness was adjusted for her and they had tested the cable by suspending her a few feet about the stage in the auditorium.  Still, twenty feet would be a long way down while trying to play the flute and keep the beat with the singers below.

            The time had been set for noon on Saturday.  Cord didn’t want to go with one o’clock again because he didn’t want anyone to suspect that there would be a repeat performance.  More than thirty triangles had been given out and Cord expected a good turn out this time.

            Everyone was instructed to be in the Food Court no later than 11:3o so they could all get seats.  By noon the tables and chairs were full.  It was the height of the lunch hour.  Cord had factored this in, too.  He was hoping more people would be below and not on the second level to observe the preparations up there.

            Six members of the Stage Crew gathered with Melody around the railing and looked at the crowd gathered below.  Both the harness and cable had been concealed in book bags.  Melody had worn her angel costume from home and had worn a long coat to conceal most of it.  She also had full white leggings on under her costume because she didn’t want everyone below to see up her dress and be shocked by anything.  Melody was proud that it was she and not Cord who had thought of that.

            Four of the Stage Crew blocked the view of passers-by while the other two helped Melody off with her coat and into the harness.  The cable was attached to the harness and each of the six took hold of the cable so they could all bear Melody’s weight when she descended.  Melody quickly hooked on the wings and attached the halo to the top of her head.

            It was almost noon.

            Melody climbed over the railing and stood on a small ledge and held the railing with one hand, nervously fingered her flute with the other, and waited.

            Suddenly, a rustling of people getting to their feet, was heard from below.  Every person who had received a triangle had shown up.

            Each triangle chimed out three times in unison and then the singing began.  The sounds of the triangles and the singing rang out loud and clear throughout the Mall.  There were very good acoustics there.

            Some shoppers had suspected something when they noticed all of the teenagers in the Food Court but dismissed it when nothing happened earlier.  Now, with the sound of the triangles and the singing, heads turned again and cameras and cell phones appeared from everywhere.

            More than thirty voices rang out loud and clear.

            “Said the night wind to the little lamb,” sang out the voices followed by two chimes on each triangle.

            “Do you see what I see.”  Ding Ding.

            “Way up in the sky little lamb.”  Ding Ding.
“Do you see what I see.”  Ding Ding.
“A star, a star, Dancing in the night, With a tail as big as a kite, With a tail as big as a kite.”  Ding Ding.

            By the time the second verse began, a number of the diners and shoppers had joined in.

            “Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy.”  Ding Ding.
“Do you hear what I hear.”  Ding Ding.
“Ringing through the sky shepherd boy.”  Ding Ding.
“Do you hear what I hear.”  Ding Ding.
“A song, a song, High above the tree, With a voice as big as the sea, With a voice as big as the sea.”  Ding Ding.

            This was Melody’s cue.  Just before the triangles sounded out their final two chimes on that second verse, she had let go of the railing, brought the flute to her lips, and stepped off the ledge half expecting to plummet to the Food Court below.

            She needn’t have worried.  The Stage Crew members were ready for this and had braced themselves.  There was no slack and Melody hung for a moment suspended and slowly began to descend.

            No one had been looking up while the singing was coming from the Food Court.  Now, the flash mob of singers below turned their gaze to the second level as Melody began her flute solo.

            There were gasps from some of the senior citizens grouped together over coffee.

            Some small fingers pointed skyward.

            Meanwhile, Melody played on and finished the first chorus before finishing her descent.

            Leo had underestimated the height from the railing even though the Stage Crew members had allowed for extra cable footage that they needed to hold onto.  The effect was that Melody remained suspended three feet above the ground.  She could go no further.

            Bravely, she started in on the second verse on her flute as the voices of her brother and the other singers raised their voices once again to join her.

            After the last note and the last word of the final verse was sung, everyone else was on their feet applauding the group and the dangling angel.

            Cord and Leo quickly ran over to Melody and unsnapped the cable from the harness and lowered her to the ground.  She had to sit down; her legs were shaking so badly.

             Cord and Leo turned and applauded Melody where she sat.  Soon it seemed like the whole of the food court, shoppers, diners, singers and all were standing over Melody and applauding.

            She was no longer just Cord’s sister.

…

            The reception for the flash mob Christmas experience that Saturday wasn’t all positive.  No one had sought permission from the Mall management to suspend someone by a cable from the second level.  In fact, Cord and the others deliberately avoided seeking permission because they didn’t want to be denied permission and they also didn’t want to tip their hand that they were planning another flash mob at the Mall for that day.

            Again, the local television station ran a news story on the flash mob with amateur video.  The report went even further to include an interview with someone from Mall management who applauded the spirit of those involved but also chastised the group for their recklessness.  Management made it clear, in the interview, that they welcomed displays of Christmas spirit but would not allow anything that would endanger the life of the participants or possibly other Mall patrons.

            A very similar reaction was received in Cord’s home after his parents saw the news segment.  He had told his parents that there would be a flash mob scene that Saturday and provided all of the details except those involving suspending Melody over the Food Court.  His Mother was the most disappointed because she had supplied the angel costume but had assumed Melody would be standing on a chair or table and not risking her life in order to entertain a bunch of shoppers.

            Cord’s parents did not dole out any punishment to their children because they were proud of their initiative but they also made it clear that they too, like Mall management, would not support further daredevil escapades.  They recommended their children just stick to singing.

…

            On Sunday, Cord, Melody, and Leo all met at Flora’s house.  There was still a bit of a chilled atmosphere in Cord’s home regarding the previous day’s scene at the Mall.  It was clear that Cord was given most of the blame because he was older and should have known better than to endanger his Sister’s life; even if descending by the cable had been her idea.

            “I guess that’s that,” Leo started after they all gathered in Flora’s room.  She too was avoiding her parents because adults all seemed to agree on anything that concerned other parents.  It might not have been their daughter that had been suspended high in the air but she was part of it and accepted responsibility by association.

            “Yeah, no one’s going to let us perform in the Mall now,” Melody responded.

            “That’s not what they said,” Flora corrected.  “That person from Mall management said they welcome displays of Christmas spirit but they didn’t want anyone getting hurt doing it.”

            All four were silent for a moment.  There were still two Saturdays before Christmas and each had imagined a bigger and better flash mob experience in the upcoming weeks.

            “The Mall’s out,” Cord began after the silence started to annoy him.  “Even if we had a free hand to do what we wanted, everyone would be expecting something.  Saturdays at the Mall would be a crowded house with not only last minute Christmas shoppers but those waiting around to see what we might do next.”

            “So?  It’s not like our last show wasn’t extravagant enough,” Melody said.  She was quite content to end things the way they were.  She really couldn’t imagine anything to top it and she quite enjoyed being the star of that show.  It was a good note to go out on.

            Throughout the rest of that Saturday and still on Sunday, Melody had received numerous texts from her friends congratulating and complimenting her on her performance.  The videos posted online were being viewed thousands of times from not only people she knew but from everyone across the country.  The comments that were posted were more than complimentary and total strangers had posted about her talent and ingenuity.  It was great having the spotlight shining on her for a change.

            “That’s all well and good for you,” replied Flora, “but the rest of us still want to do something.”  It might be said of Flora that she was a little jealous of the attention being focused on Melody but she also wanted to please Cord because she wouldn’t mind a little more attention from him.

            Flora, Cord, and Theo had all grown up together.  They lived within a few blocks of each other and had gone up through primary school and now into high-school.  There had never been any sort of romantic relationship between any of the boys and Flora but it couldn’t be denied that there was an attraction there.  Leo liked Flora but he knew that Flora really liked Cord.  She never said anything to him about it and certainly didn’t show any outward signs of affection but it wouldn’t take much encouragement from Cord for her to show him how she felt.  Cord, himself, was confused.  He was Flora’s friend but at times he wanted there to be more but Flora never seemed to show that she wanted anything more.  So everyone stayed on friendly terms.  Being a teenager could be a confusing time.

            “Flora’s right,” Cord said, “we need to do something more.  We can’t quit now.”  Cord also wanted a little more attention; even if he wasn’t going to get it from Flora.

            “We don’t have much time left.  It’s only a couple of weeks now until Christmas,” piped up Leo.  “If we’re not in the Mall, no one’s going to see us.  Where else can we find such a large crowd in one place?”

            “And the Saturday before Christmas wouldn’t do either,” added Melody, “because that’s the day of the Parade.  Everyone will be in the streets watching that.”

            This time it was Flora who had an exciting idea.  “Why not the parade?” she asked.  “We could have a float or something.”

            “It wouldn’t be a flash mob if we were on a float,” corrected Leo.

            “It would, if we weren’t on the float,” said Cord.

            The other three looked at him in confusion.  Both Leo and Cord were right but at least Leo’s explanation was a little clearer.

            “What if there were a float but we weren’t on it?” Cord tried to explain.

            The blank stares from his sister and his friends suggested that Cord was still not making sense.

            “Look,” Cord began, in another attempt to clarify his thoughts, “if there was a float, it could act as a distraction to everyone watching the parade but then the flash mob appears and we surround the float and do our bit.”

            The others began to listen carefully as their faces beamed with understanding.  Leo jumped up from the floor, where he had been sitting, and chimed in with a thought of his own.

            “I have a great idea for maximum exposure, too,” he excitedly blurted.

            “Hold that thought,” Cord responded.  “Before we talk about what the flash mob is going to do, we need to sort out the float part.”

            “What about a band?” Flora asked.  “Maybe, we could use the school band.  Melody, you’re in the band, what do you think?”

            “There’s at least fifty in the concert band.  That’s too many for a float.  It would be good if they were a marching band but they’re not.”  Melody was a little disappointed because she could see herself up there with the band.  It would be more exposure for her.

            “I like the band idea,” Cord said.  If he had been looking directly at Flora he might have noticed her blush a little in reaction to Cord’s recognition.

            Leo had been silent for a little bit.  He had felt a little rebuked by Cord not letting him explain right away about his maximum exposure idea.  Now, he had another idea that he was sure Cord couldn’t ignore.

            “The Pick-Up Six.”  That’s all Leo said and then he was quiet again.

            “What?” Melody and Cord exclaimed in unison.

            “The Pick-Up Six,” Leo said again.  “You told me once about your Dad’s old band.  Didn’t you say he still plays the trumpet?”

            Cord and Melody looked at Leo with a look that suggested they thought he was either crazy or a genius.  It was a good idea.

            “That’s a good idea,” Cord said with approval.  “Maybe we better hear your maximum exposure idea now.”

            Leo started in on his brilliant idea regarding maximum exposure and that’s how the final scene of the flash mob Christmas experience began to be set.

…

            Everything came together rather easily despite initial stumbling blocks.  The first of these was of course The Pick-Up Six.  The band hadn’t performed together in over twenty years.  Cord’s Father had kept up with his old band mates and couple of them still lived in the area but the band was only part of the glorious past of Dad’s youth.  Never underestimate, however, the longings of the middle-aged man.

            Cord had explained to his Father about the new idea for the flash mob Christmas and how everything centered on the need for a band…a good band.  This downplayed the real truth that everything actually centered on the flash mob and the band was just going to be the distraction.  Naturally, Cord didn’t tell his Father the truth of things.

            It didn’t get Dad too long to get hooked on the idea.  He once, like Melody of late, had had a taste of the limelight and was slightly jealous of the attention his children and their friends had been receiving.  The idea of reuniting the band for this Christmas experience was very tempting and it wasn’t like he was out of practice.  There were those nights when he’d set off on a lonely solo in the garage on his trumpet.  In the end, it didn’t take much to convince Dad.

            The Pick-Up Six had consisted of five other guys besides Cord’s Father.  Two of the other members lived in the area and communicated with Dad, however infrequently, via emails.  The other members also kept in touch electronically.  They had been good friends in College and the band experience had cemented a lasting relationship despite being separated by years and miles.

            Dad reached out to the other members of The Pick-Up Six and tempted them with the reunion idea.  The two locals agreed immediately and it wasn’t hard to convince the two other band members to agree to come to town for a Christmas gig.  All of the band members were aware of the flash mob Christmas experience through news stories that had been picked up and broadcast across the country or through the online videos that had started to go viral.  They too dreamt of the notoriety that their participation might bring and an ego isn’t a hard thing to stroke when the person is willing.

            The one problem was Chet.  Chet had been the piano player with The Pick-Up Six.  He had studied engineering in College and now he was off in South America working on a new project.  The Pick-Up Six was now The Pick-Up Five.

            Mom came to the rescue again.  First, she had been the initial influence to Cord’s idea for the flash mob.  Then she came through with the triangles and the angel costume.  Dad didn’t have to look too far to find a replacement.  Mom had the talent and she had a piano.  The Pick-Up Six would play again with only a slight change in personnel.

            Dad found some Dixieland Band arrangements on the Internet for a dozen Christmas songs and the traditional arrangement for the special song the flash mob would perform.  All of these, he forwarded on to the other band members.  They wouldn’t have any time to run these down together so it was agreed they meet early the morning of the Parade so there’d be at least one rehearsal.  Mom and Dad practiced a few times before that day and it was interesting to hear the duet of piano and trumpet that echoed from Cord’s home on the occasional evening.  The reunion of The Pick-Up Six was coming together.

            Cord and his friends took care of the other details.

            First they needed to make sure that The Pick-Up Six would be able to perform in the band.  Flora took care of that.  She arranged for their last minute entry and filled out the entry form with all of the details.

            Melody came up with a trailer for the float.  Her new found fame made her very popular in her own right at the school and she arranged for a favor with one of her friends who were bussed.  The friend lived on a farm and arranged for her father to donate the use of his hay wagon for a platform for the band and his services as a driver in his own pick-up truck to pull the float.  The addition of the pick-up truck was very appropriate given the name of the band that would be using his donated equipment.

            Cord, Leo, and members of the Stage Crew came up with sound equipment and amplifiers to make sure everyone could hear The Pick-Up Six.  They also came up with some old time striped straw hats to give the band more of that Dixieland flavor.  The hats had been left over from a production of The Music Man and, like the sound equipment and amplifiers, were liberated from the stock room with permission.

            The handy Stage Crew members, who had helped make Melody float in the area, also became roadies for the band.  On the morning of the parade they helped set up the sound equipment and the band instruments on the wagon.  The wagon had showed up around noon at Cord’s home to begin the preparations for the Parade.  Loading the piano was no easy feat but there were plenty of volunteers with the Stage Crew and The Pick-Up Six and they managed to get the piano out of Cord’s house, across the porch, and onto the wagon that was backed up to the front of the house.  Further touches were added through donations of an artificial Christmas tree with decorations, a generator to run the sound equipment, and some make-shift banners placed along the back and sides of the wagon advertising The Pick-Up Six and wishes for a Merry Christmas.

            The assembly of the flash mob was the easy part.  Word was spread again throughout the group that had been at the last experience at the Mall and through texts and social media.  They were all informed about the song choice and details regarding time and particular location for the performance.

            The timing and the location had been Leo’s master stroke.  He had indeed considered the route of the Parade and the one place where they would receive maximum exposure.

            Every year, the local television station taped and broadcast the Parade, from a temporary platform erected near City Hall.  This was near the end of the Parade route but the area swelled with on-lookers as many Parade goers hoped to be able to have themselves seen on television by friends and family.  The area was usually overcrowded by hundreds of parents and children and the temporary bleachers that were erected in that location were always full.

            Leo knew that a flash mob experience at this precise location would get a maximum viewing by the hundreds not only in the crowd but the thousands more who would see the Parade on television.  It was sure to be better than anything the Mall could offer up.

            The local television station had already done two news stories of the flash mob and conveniently sent a news crew to the Mall on the Saturday before the Parade.  Unfortunately there was no news story there because the flash mob had skipped the Mall as all preparations were being made for the ultimate performance during the Parade.     There had also been a good sized crowd at the Mall that day who had anticipated another flash mob but when nothing happened, the crowd continued with their shopping and left the Mall a little disappointed.  By the day of the Parade, most people in the City had given up on there ever being another flash mob Christmas experience.

…

            The day of the Parade was cold and gray.  By noon, a light snowfall had begun.  By the start of the parade at two o’clock, the ground had a nice white covering that added to everyone’s enjoyment of the Parade.

            There were numerous floats from different merchants, Churches, Schools, charitable groups, and Insurance companies.  There always seemed to be more representation from Insurance companies than any other establishment.  These always wished everyone a festive yuletide season but also wanted everyone to know they were there with full coverage option for everyone’s insurance needs.

            Spaced between all of the floats were the requisite number of marching bands, baton twirlers, horses, dogs, and clowns.  Candies were thrown to every direction from the floats and the walkers.  Other volunteers waved and marched as they carried shovels or pails to clean up after all of the animal acts.

            The Pick-Up Six was near the end of the parade about eight floats ahead of Santa Claus.  They were the last of the musical floats because the Parade organizers wanted to ensure that the strains of any loud music had died out before Santa came into view.  Nothing was to upstage Santa or drown out his cries of “Ho, Ho, Ho,” or “Merry Christmas.”

            There had been one added touch added to The Pick-Up Six float.  Hay bales had been added and some of the flash mob had been invited to ride on the float and make it look like a little audience for the Dixieland band.  Flora and Melody were among the dozen or so students who waved merrily from the float and pretended like nothing else was going to happen.

            The Pick-Up Six performed fairly well for a band that had only been recently reunited.  The sound coming from the amplifiers was loud and clear and there were only a few clinkers on the songs that had been quickly rehearsed.  Throughout the Parade the band had exhausted their dozen Christmas arrangements and began to repeat the songs for those watching during the latter half of the route.

            When the float bearing The Pick-Up Six reached the point where the television cameras were focused on them, Dad leaned into his microphone and announced a new song selection.

            “Now, we’d like to play for you, something we know you’re going to enjoy, ‘We Need A Little Christmas’.”

            The selection of this song had been a joint effort between Cord and his Father.  Cord wanted a song that was upbeat and that would add to the flash mob Christmas experience.  Dad wanted to make sure it was something The Pick-Up Six could perform.  The song also had a short instrumental introduction before the verse began.

            When the musical introduction began, the pick-up truck pulling the float came to a stop and Flora, Melody, and some others on the float went into action.  Strings were pulled above the make-shift banners that had advertised The Pick-Up Six, and new banners unfurled to reveal a new message.  From both sides and the rear, large print now bore the words FLASH MOB CHRISTMAS.

            When the banners straightened out and the words could be read, a loud cheer went up from the crowd gathered in the streets and in the bleachers.  A swarm of people, the flash mob members, came out of everywhere and surrounded the float.  The singing began on cue as the musical introduction concluded.

            The flash mob membership had grown.  Where there had been more than thirty triangle playing teenagers during the last Mall experience, there were now more than one hundred.

            The Pick-Up Six played like they had never played before.  They knew that most of the cheering and applause was for the flash mob but they were caught up in it all.

            The cheering and the applause could not drown out the voices of the flash mob or the music of The Pick-Up Six.  It was the most fantastic Christmas experience anyone had ever experienced.  Poor Santa, waiting eight floats back, would pale by comparison.  Santa would have to settle for the faces of the little children; which for any Santa, should have been enough.

            The song and the flash mob experience seemed to go on forever despite it really being only a few minutes in length.  After the song was over, the applause and the cheers was so loud that people who were further behind or ahead on the Parade route were wondering what it was they had missed or what was in  store for them when the Parade moved on to their location.

            The volunteer driver of the pick-up truck pulling the float waited patiently until the song ended, the cheering and applause subsided, and the members of the flash mob, who were not already on the float, disappeared into the crowds of people along the street.  He then put the truck in gear and slowly began to pull the float forward.

            After the flash mob had dispersed, some of the members of the mob still on the float from before, began to jump down and follow their friends.  Flora had been one of these and she prepared to get off the float just as the volunteer driver started up again and the float started forwarded with a jerk.

            Flora lost her footing and awkwardly tumbled off the back of the float and fell to the pavement below.  She had tried to balance herself but she hit the ground hard and her head struck against the snow covered street, rendering her unconscious.

…

            The aftermath of the flash mob appearance during the parade was hectic.  The initial excitement of the musical experience quickly turned to shock and concern upon Flora’s accident.

            Melody was the first at Flora’s side.  Melody had just descended from the wagon prior to Flora’s tumble and had turned in time to see the girl strike hard against the pavement.  She was to have joined Flora in following the other flash mob members who had just left the scene where they would meet up at an appointed location.

            Mom was next to respond when she heard cries from her daughter and other onlookers.    Mom, being a teacher, had training in first-aid and knew just what to do.  She had yelled for the volunteer driver in the pick-up truck to stop and then jumped down to administer to Flora.  Blankets that had been covering some of the hay bales were handed down and were laid over the girl and around her.  Mom knew that with a head injury, Flora should not be moved until an ambulance arrived.

            Melody called 911 and let them know about the accident.  Dad, sensing a changing mood in the crowd, urged the other members of The Pick-Up Six to play on and try to keep the crowd calm.

            Within thirty minutes of Flora’s accident, the scene was cleared, the girl transported to the hospital, and the Parade continued on.  Mom and Melody rode in the ambulance with Flora.

            The Pick-Up Six minus one continued on with the remainder of the Parade.  Those watching the Parade behind and forward on the route wondered about the delay but rumors had carried along the route that someone had been injured.  Nonetheless, Santa made his appearance and the children rejoiced; most unaware of the accident that followed the flash mob Christmas experience.

            Meanwhile, Cord, Leo, and most of the other flash mob were also unaware that Flora had been injured.  The arrangement was that they were to quickly leave the scene and meet up at Pizza Pizzazz; one of the few pizza establishments in the city that wasn’t named after some mysterious male owner.

            Pizza Pizzazz wasn’t very far from the scene of the Parade flash mob and most were there in no time.  Cord and Leo were so excited about their recent experience that neither paid much attention to the fact that neither Melody nor Flora was among the crowd at the pizza parlor.  When Cord finally clued in to the absence of his sister and his friend, his phone rang with an explanation.  It was Melody calling from the Hospital and detailing what happened.

            Cord had to tell Leo and the others about Flora’s accident.  They all agreed that a celebration at Pizza Pizzazz would be inappropriate given the circumstances and most joined Cord and Leo as they left to attend with the others at the Hospital.

            Flora’s parents had been watching the Parade on television.  Their daughter had hinted that something would happen during the Parade and that they should watch.  Like the Parade goers, they were quite surprised by the flash mob performance.  They also watched in horror as they saw someone fall from the back of the float.  They could not tell from the broadcast who had fallen nor could they see what had happened at the rear of the float as a crowd surged around the fallen girl.  It wasn’t until Cord and Melody’s Mother called them en route to the Hospital that they learned that the injured girl was their daughter.

            The scene at the hospital was chaotic.  The waiting room overflowed with many members of the flash mob including Cord, Leo, and Melody.  Mom was there as well and spoke briefly to Flora’s parents when they arrived and before they were whisked off by a nurse to be with their daughter.  Dad had not yet arrived as he had to finish the Parade route and meet up with the Stage Crew members who had arranged to help unload the wagon and return the piano to its rightful place in the dining room of Cord’s home.  The other members of The Pick-Up Six left with little word but asked to be kept informed about Flora.  Dad then piled into his car with the members of the Stage Crew and then sped off to the hospital to be with the rest of his family and the large crowd already in attendance.

            Eventually, after waiting a couple of hours, the group at the hospital thinned out with encouragement from hospital staff and the news that Flora would be alright.  She had awoken within an hour of arriving at the hospital.  She had a large goose-egg on her right temple and one doozy of a headache.  The attending Doctor was concerned about a possible concussion and she was kept for two days for observation.  Her parents took turns remaining at her side and a few visitors were allowed to see her during her stay in the hospital.  She was released the day before Christmas with orders to rest.

            Leo and Melody both visited with Flora a couple of times in the Hospital.  Cord did not.  Although he had initially attended at the Hospital immediately following her accident, he could not bring himself to see her lying in a bed there.  He blamed himself for what happened to her.  The flash mob Christmas experience had started with him and it had gone too far.  It was fine when it was just the four of them standing and singing at the Mall but then he had pushed for a bigger experience.  He had put his Sister at risk during the second performance and hadn’t accepted responsibility for it and now Flora had been hurt.  It was now coming to bear that he was responsible for all of this.

            Cord had slipped out of the Hospital early with some of the other flash mob members.  He didn’t talk to anyone.  He did not return any of their texts.

…

            Melody and Leo tried to talk to Cord over those two days while Flora remained in the hospital.  There was no consoling him.  Even Mom and Dad could find nothing to say to raise his spirits.

            Of course, no one blamed Cord for what happened.  It was an unforeseen accident and even the performance of the flash mob during the Parade received great reviews.  The videos online and postings all over the Internet spoke about the performance and applauded the flash mob for their ingenuity.  Cord, however, could not accept any credit for this.  He was so consumed by what had happened to Flora.

            There had been great television coverage of the Parade but the lead story that night had been Flora’s accident.  There had been an update later in the news that Flora was fine and resting comfortably at the Hospital.  There had also been a brief segment devoted to the flash mob performance and the reporter also praised this holiday happening.

            Cord kept to himself.  He wasn’t sure what to do.  He knew that Flora had been hurt but he also realized that not seeing her was also hurting her.  Some of the messages of his family had started to get through to him.

            Late in the afternoon on Christmas Eve, he convinced himself to go see Flora at her house.  It was one of the few times he left his room over the past few days.

            While Cord had been brooding in isolation, however, other events had been transpiring. Mom and Dad were concerned about Cord and knew something needed to be done.  So they set into play something to help their son.

…

            By the time Cord had set his mind to finally going to see Flora at her house on Christmas Eve, everything was ready.

            “Where are you going, son?” Dad questioned Cord when he emerged from his room with his coat in his hand.

            “I’m going to go see Flora,” Cord responded.  “I’ve given it a lot of thought and it’s what I have to do.  I just hope I know what to say to her.”

            “Look Cord, stop kicking yourself.  We’ve all told you that this wasn’t your fault.  You started to do a good thing and you have.  You brought a great Christmas experience to many people.”

            “Yeah, but Flora got hurt!” Cord snapped.

            “Yes, and Flora got hurt,” Dad repeated back softly to him.  “No one blames you for that.  Even Flora has said she doesn’t blame you.  You’re the only one pointing the finger at yourself.”

            Cord put his head down.  His Dad was right but it didn’t make him feel better about anything.  These past two days, he’d thought long and hard and his feelings for Flora were foremost in his mind.  How would she feel now after all of this?  He felt responsible for her injury and he had made it worse by not going to see her before this.

            “Look, I’ll give you a ride over to Flora’s,” Dad said.

            “No, Dad, I’d rather walk,” Cord replied.

            “It’s starting to snow out there,” Dad observed.  “Besides, I need you to give me a hand with something.  I have to pick up a last minute Christmas present at the Mall and I’ll need your help.”

            Cord had forgotten about Christmas.  Despite setting out to bring a great Christmas experience to everyone else, he wasn’t much in the mood for Christmas himself.

            “It won’t take long,” Dad quickly added.  He knew he was starting to lose his son’s attention.  “And, I really need you on this one.”

            “Okay,” Cord reluctantly agreed.

            Cord and Dad climbed into the car with no words passing between them.  Cord was still trying to figure out what he was going to say to Flora.

            When they approached the Mall, Cord could see that the parking lot was jammed with cars.  Everyone had obviously gone back to their commercialism and was doing their last minute Christmas shopping.  Maybe the flash mob Christmas experience hadn’t accomplished anything, Cord thought.

            As Dad turned the car into the parking lot, Cord spotted a huge crowd gathered in one location.  Dad was steering the car in that direction.

            “What’s going on?” Cord asked.

            “I don’t know, Dad replied innocently.  “Let’s go check it out.”

            Saying that he didn’t know what was happening was a huge understatement for Dad; if not an outright lie.  Dad, with Mom and Melody’s help had arranged all of this.  Concerned with Cord’s state of mind, the three had devised their own Christmas experience.

            Mom had contacted Flora’s parents and made the initial plans.  They were a key part of what was planned.

            Melody had spread the word through Leo and insisted everything be kept from Cord.  They needn’t have worried about Cord finding out because he hadn’t been talking to anyone.  He had even pocketed his cell phone and stopped checking his texts.

            Dad had reached out to the television station and had arranged for a special message to go out over the noon news the day before Christmas.  A reporter was even dispatched to the Mall that afternoon to cover the event.

            All of this had happened in the days and hours before Dad and Cord arrived at the Mall.  By the time of their arrival, there were hundreds in attendance.

            As Dad and Cord approached the gathered crowd, the assembled people parted to allow the Father and Son to enter further in.

            When the throng parted in two, Cord spotted his Mother and Melody beside the wagon that had been used in the Parade.  There were no hay bales but it had been decked out with a Christmas tree again and numerous decorations.  Seated on the edge of the wagon was Flora.  She smiled at seeing Cord and tears formed on her cheeks.

            Suddenly there was music.  At first, it began with a clarinet and trombone.  It was the two other local members of The Pick-Up Six.  A flute and trumpet soon chimed in as Dad and Melody retrieved their instruments that had lay upon the wagon where they had been stashed ahead of time.  Singing also followed as the entire mob began to sing ‘Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas’.  It was another flash mob Christmas experience.

            Flora was lowered from the wagon and she embraced Cord as he approached.  Neither of them needed to say a word to each other.  Everything was explained in the embrace.

            The singing continued and more songs were sung.  Leo retrieved two guitars from hiding and handed Cord’s to him.  Both began on ‘We Wish You A Merry Christmas’.  This was how it all started.

            The news coverage of the event carried an abbreviated version of this Christmas experience.

            “And if you think this is all a little too thick in sentiment,” the reporter started to sum up, “or syrupy or corny then you’d be right.  But isn’t that what a good Christmas Special is supposed to be all about?  And this has been one special Christmas,” the reporter concluded.

            Indeed, it was thick, and syrupy and corny and everything the reporter said it was.  It was also the best Christmas experience anyone gathered had ever had.

            And that’s how it started and ended with a boy named Cord.