The sun. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1937-1972, December 22, 1966, Image 38
SEC. C — PAGE 2 The Newberry Sun, Newberry, S. C., Thursday, December 22, 1966
II itn Ma r i/ his <\s-
])<>usc(l icijc. hciny great irith
child. And so it teas, that,
irhilc they iccrc there, the dags
ucre accomplished that she
should he delivered ..."
By Sam Smith
In the shallow depth of a
jungle foxhole, the Christmas
spirit is a hard thing to come
by. In fact, if it wasn't for some
wise guy, like the "preacher"
over there, you wouldn't even
know what day it teas, as if it
made any difference.
Lost. Cut off from your
company. Burrowed d >wn in
a muddy hole that the enemy
may any moment come to re
claim for his own, you can but
gaze up at an empty night sky
and try to close your ears
against the monotonous sound
of his voice.
". . . And Joseph also went
up from Calilee, out of the city
of Nazareth, into .Judea, unto
the city of David, which is
called Bethlehem (because he
was of the house and Uncage
of David) ....
Nuts. It must be near day
light. We’ve been in this hole
for hours. Seems more like
months, though, w h a t with
"the kid” over there calling for
his mama when he’s asleep
and crying out loud when
he's awake. And Preacher, him
reciting just like he was read
ing it out of a book. How does
a guy get like that, anyhow?
Boy! Fat chance we got
being delivered from here. Five
get you ten we’ve been marked
off already. Operation mess-
up, that’s us. What starts off
as a simple patrol winds up a
one-way ticket out of the war . .
out of the whole picture. Why
should they take us prisoner?
The way they move around,
we'd be too much excess bag
gage.
Look at sarge. Is he wor
ried? How can you tell? That
lump of tobacco in his left jaw
hasn't moved in an hour or
two. Neither has his eyes. II
1 couldn't hear him breathing.
I'd think he was dead. Well,
come tomorrow morning . . .
"And she brought forth hei
first born Son, and wrappea
him in swaddling clothes, ana
laid Him in a manger; because
there was no room for them ir
the inn. ’’
No room in this cotton
pickin' foxhole, either. Reb,
there, snoring like he was safe
at home in a feather bed. That
guy could sleep on a rock pile.
First in line for chow and pay,
first of all to hit the hay. Nice
guy, though. Maybe he has
the right attitude. Why worry?
Not much you can do about
things. .Just rock along, get
your share of everything you
can, speak only when you’re
spoken to, don't volunteer for
nothin’.
" . . .And there were in the
same country shepherds abid
ing in the field, keeping watch
over their flock by night. ”
And keeping watch is what
they're doing out there. Wonder
how close they are? Surely they
know we're here. They broke
off the search at twilight, but
you can bet they’re not far.
Come daylight, they’ll zero in
on us, for sure. We haven’t
got a prayer.
"And. lo, the angel oj the
Lord came upon them, and the
glory of the Lord shone round
about them ...”
There she comes. That first
break in the sky. Can’t be long
now'. The trees are beginning
to take shape. 1 know 1 can
see movement. There’s no
breeze. Too big to be a bird.
It is; it must be; it is them.
"Fear not; for, behold, I
bring you good tidings of
great joy, ivhich shall be to
all people. ”
That cooks us. It’s broad
daylight now. 'Phis is it. Wake
up, you heavy-eyed sky- :
jumpers, you’re about to be
pounced on.
"Hey, hey, you guys, heads
dowm. There’s mail coming in.
It’s ours. Listen to them
mortars bang. Hey, Sarge!
Reb! Kid! Hey. Preach! Look
up! Look up! Choppers, man,
choppers. Come on here, you
whirleybirds! Merry Christ
mas, you egg-beaters. Merry
Christmas to one and all!”
FIRST NEW YEAR
The first to welcome each
New Year are the residents of
the Chatham Islands, New Zea
land.
MARTIN FEED & SEED CO.
630 Caldwell Street
Phone 276-4011 Newberry, S. C.
Centuries ago, Romans decorated their homes, public build
ings, and temples on festive occasions, and we have followed
this ancient custom. In most communities, at Christmas there
are beautifully decorated store windows, often depicting the
holiday scenes.
The merchants along New
York’s famous Fifth Avenue
vie with each other in original
ity and spare no expense in the
creation of luxury and beauty.
The final displays attract such
crowds that special roped-off
areas are necessary and the
public is kept moving by uni
formed guards. In many cases
the air is perfumed with some
special fragrance and music
accompanies the changing
scenes of animated figures in
side the windows.
Weeks before Christmas a
giant Christmas tree is set up
with much ceremony in the
center of Rockefeller Plaza,
decorated with huge colored
baubles, and the lighting of the
tree is the official opening of
the Christmas season. The en
tire length of Park Avnue is
lined with its own lighted
Christmas trees, and it is a
beautiful sight in snow. Many
New York skyscrapers, always
dramatic against the night sky,
are also aglow with red and
green lights in honor of the
occasion.
While New York goes all
out for brilliant, sophisticated
Christmas emphasizing luxury
with a touch of frivolity, other
cities celebrate in their way. In
some where traffic hazards do
not prevent, the downtown
streets are festooned with col
ored lights, bells, stars, candles,
and other yuletide emblems.
Many American cities are
famed for their distinctive street
decorations, which visitors of
ten drive many miles to see.
For instance, since 1920, the
city of Fresno, California, has
featured its Christnvas Tree
Lane. This is slightly less than
2 miles in length and is said to
be the longest in our country.
The project began on a small
scale, but by 1930 the great
cedars lining Van Ness Avenue
had been lighted with colored
bulbs for a quarter of a mile.
Then, in 1959, more than 300
stately trees had been festooned
with lights, and over 121,000
people visited the unusual
scene.
PEOPLE’S DISCOUNT C0RP.
1400 MAIN STREET—NEWBERRY, S. C.