Christmas-by-the-Sea

For many years Pugwash had a very successful manufacturer of pewter products that attracted buyers from far and wide. In the Fall each year they and other merchants organized an event called Merry Madness which attracted hundreds of shoppers to Pugwash. Alas, Seagull Pewter no longer manufactures here and the 'big draw' no longer exists. In an effort to revive the event and create the excitement of those heady years, a committee of the Chamber of Commerce organized a community event which they called Christmas-by-the-Sea. It was held for the first time in 2007 and was reasonably successful. But the 2008 version of CBTS was larger and even more successful. The event was held over 2 days, Friday and Saturday and featured a number of activities around the Village. There was a Tree Fest featuring over 30 trees decorated by members of various community groups and businesses. There was a chowder supper at the Curling Club, family activities at the High School, a dessert fest at the Cumberland Lodge, readings and a sing-along at our Cafe, and a Parade of Light through the Village which culminated with the lighting and hanging stars of Peace on the Village Christmas tree. There were several other events held as well. Almost all of them were well attended and a wonderful spirit of sharing and co-operation was created.

We were open as usual on Friday, but this week we added Saturday afternoon to our hours and hosted a reading and sing-along event. We had eight people who are known throughout the community read a short Christmas story or poem. Some of the readers offered their personal works and others read something a little more traditional. The Cafe was full with about 30 people and all were enthusiastic. The crowd contained young school aged children and senior citizens. I was particularly moved by the poem of peace written by Maya Angelou entitled Amazing Peace. Its simple message gave everyone a chance to reflect on what Peace means to them. The afternoon concluded with Ben Smith leading the audience in singing some Christmas songs. All in all the weekend was a great success and already the organizers are thinking of ways to make next year's CBTS even bigger and better.

It's a real reward to find something that brings the Villagers together and leaves them with a feeling of peaceful togetherness. On Friday evening after the tree was lit we stood around it and sang Christmas carols. Some of us had lights and some of us had copies of the lyrics. I shone my light on a young man's page and we sang the words together. I had never met him before but at the end of the caroling he turned to me introduced himself and shook my hand. It was one of those special moments that makes these things worthwhile. What will you be doing this holiday season that will give you that warm fuzzy feeling and verify once again that there is still hope for humanity?