This is the tale of Lucy and the Christmas cookies. Well, a few years back I decided that it would be wonderful to have an "Old Fashioned Christmas". I searched all the magazines for ornament designs and instructions. After hours of pouring over pages and pages of suggestions, I finally made the decision that homemade ornaments would do the trick. So, I invited the whole family over Thanksgiving weekend to help me make Gingerbread men and women, decorated cookies, and of course, gingerbread and cookie houses. We gathered in the kitchen and around the dining room table. Some of us made the dough, some of us rolled the cookies and cut them out, and we all decorated the extraordinary ornaments after they were baked. The mixing, rolling, cutting, baking, and decorating went on for two days. When we were finished we all looked fondly at our personal favorites. We ooh'd and ahh'd over all the adorable Santas, reindeers, angels, bells, wreaths, Christmas trees, sleighs, snowmen and snow women, and most especially our excellent gingerbread people.

While we were busy mixing, rolling, cutting, baking, and decorating, there was my Lucy, my potbellied pig. Lucy didn't say much during this time, but she was always on the alert looking for tasty tidbits that might fall her way. She spent most of her time under the table with her nose to the floor looking and smelling. I certainly never have to vacuum up any crumbs when Lucy is around. I think she really enjoyed doing her share of the work - keeping the floors tidy. After all, Lucy is a part of our family too!

After the family left, I carefully placed all the decorations away. Even though Christmas is a very important time for our family and decorating is always fun, I did think we should let the turkey get cold before we brought in the tree. A couple of weeks later I could not wait any longer. I had to see what all our decorations would look like hanging from our tree and garlands. I took out the miniature houses and made a Christmas village on the mantle. All the gum drops, candy canes, hard Christmas candies, and frosting made me think of Hansel and Gretel. While Lucy watched me put the houses up, I think they reminded her of other things. I hung garland over the entrance to the dining room and around its picture window. We had already decided that the big gingerbread people would be perfect to highlight the garland. So, there they were scattered throughout the branches. They reminded me of clowns dancing in the trees. I looked into Lucy's eyes and I knew for certain they reminded her of something else. The Santas, reindeers, angels, bells, wreaths, Christmas trees, sleighs, snowmen and snow women were to be added to our Christmas tree along with candy canes, dried apples and oranges, cinnamon sticks, plaid bows and red bells. Lucy had learned from Christmas before not to get into the tree, but decorating with food would be a real test. To help her out, I started the cookies about a foot over her head. From previous Christmases, I had learned that by placing bells near the bottom of the tree I would be warned when Lucy couldn't stand it any longer. She periodically would have to check out the ornaments to see if there just might be something good to eat. I am sure she just elieved that anything looking that good had to be good to eat. After several hours of decorating, Terry and I admired the whole family's handwork. Just as I still believe in Santa Clause, I know for sure and for certain Lucy was thinking other thoughts.

The days passed and Christmas day grew nearer. The bells on the tree remained relatively quiet. I was very proud of Lucy. She had learned her Christmas tree lessons very well, indeed. It probably was about a week before Christmas before we heard the first "plat". Terry and I both looked at each other and wondered what on earth could have made that noise. Lucy was far wiser than we. She knew right away where the noise was from. She bolted from the couch and headed straight for the dining room, with me right behind her. There she was under the window garland eating as fast as she could. You see, no one told me that as time passed and our wonderful gingerbread people became heavier with moisture from the air, they would drop from their perches. No one had to tell Lucy this, however. She knew all along. While we serenely enjoyed our family's creative genius and anticipated sharing their handiwork on Christmas day, Lucy waited and listened. Lucy knew what was to come. All she had to do was be patient and wait. Good things come to those who wait, you know.

Not to be outdone, I rewired the gingerbread people. That didn't seem to help much because every once in a while we would hear that infamous "plat", and there would go Lucy. I really didn't know grown pigs could move so fast. She would periodically run the line, just to make sure she hadn't missed a fallen clown. By Christmas day there were still a few gingerbread people "dancing through the trees" but most of them were dancing in Lucy's head as fond memory of Christmas morsels. Lucy loved and I do mean Loved that old fashioned Christmas!

© Kathleen Myers 1997