CHRISTMAS GREETINGS, December 23, 1987

Best wishes and
our sincere
gratitude for a
cheer-filled
holiday season.

La Maison
1114 - 3rd Street
Castlegar
365-6265

SHORT STORY WINNERS

Management and Board of Directors

Warfield Credit Union

Season's Greetings from Phil and Larry at

Columbia Auto Service

Phone 365-5422

The Christmas

By BRIAN PORT
Age 12

It was Christmas Eve, and
as Tammy looked out the
window it started to snow.
She hated the snow and she
started to twitch her tail.
Every year the snow came
and every year she hated it
more because it made her
feet cold. She got up and
went to her food bow! where
she contentedly licked up her
food.

Most years the owners of
the house left and went away
but this year they decided to
stay. This made Tammy
happy because it meent the
house was not cold. She
sauntered over to the Christ-
mas tree where she started
to jump at one of the shiny

ornaments. Then she saw a

better ornament higher
above it on the tree. She
started to climb the Christ-
mas tree to reach it. She
made it to the branch that
the ornament was on and
started to craw! out on it.
Just before she could reach
the ornament the tree start-
ed to tip. It landed with a big
crash that was followed by a

lot of swearing. After being
shouted at for about five
minutes Tammy slinked
away with her ears down and
her tai] twitching to take
refuge under a chair.

Later that evening when
the owners of the house had
gone to bed, Tammy crept
out from under the chair. She
walked around the house for
awhile until she found a half
full glass of eggnog. She
drank it and then lay down
by the fire. Before she fell
asleep she turned her head
and looked at the Christmas
tree. It had been put up again

and looked as if nothing had _.. first place
happened to it.

With her belly full of self, “Who would have
eggnog andanicefiretoliein thought that Christmas

front of she thought to her. would turn out so well?”

Tammy’s mom goes home

By DARYL WONG
Age 14

“It was Christmas Eve and
as Tammy looked out the
window it started to snow.”
Tammy lived with her sick
mother in an empty motel.
Across the street was the
restaurant that Tammy had
worked in for the last two
years. Tammy's mother suf
fered from heart trouble as a
result of over work and was
put in the hospital.

Tammy's boss was a kind
old man who had helped
Tammy and her mother out
during hard and rough times.
It was only a day before
Christmas and Tammy had
been trying to save enough
money to buy a turkey dinner
for her mother and herself,

but now her mother was in
the hospital. All Tammy
wanted was for her mother to
be up and well for Christmas.

Tammy had visited the
hospital staff and her mother
whenever she could. She
asked the doctors how her
mother was so many times
that the doctors were going
crazy.

The night before Christ-
mas, Tammy cleaned the bar
up while her boss waited to
take her to the hospital to see
her mother. On the way to
the hospital her boss asked
Tammy and her mother to
spend Christmas with him
and his family. Tammy ac-
cepted the offer, with joy and
relief.

When they got to Tammy's
mother's room it was cleaned

W.. full up with extra special Christmas
wishes for you, for Joy, Friendship and
Cheer. lt’s a privilege to serve you . thanks

Castlegar Co-op Transportation

Management, Stat and Directors

out. Her mother wasn't in the
room with all the machinery
hooked up to her. Tammy
thought that her mother was
dead. Tammy ran to a doctor
and asked him where she
was. The doctor told her that
her mother was well enough
to go home. Her mother was
in the entertainment room
watching T.V. and was wait-
ing for her.

Tammy immediately ran to
the T.V. room with tears
running out of her eyes and
with her boss behind her.
Tammy hugged her mother
and carried her bags to the
car. As the three of them
walked to the car, Tammy
whispered to herself, “who
would have thought that
Christmas would turn out so
well?”

“DARYL WONG
... second place

a te

A YASS =F) At
WWE: ea PE

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me set 29 10s

REETINGS

May the endearing customs and pleasures
of an old fashioned Chnistmas decorate every
moment of your Yuletide.

Employees of
kootenay power

One

Dad gets his job back

By DONNA FERREIRA
3

Age 1

It was Christmas Eve and
as Tammy looked out the
window it started to snow.
She saw her father coming
home from work. When Tam-
my’s dad got inside, she gave
him a hug and kiss. Tammy
noticed something was
wrong with her father. So
she asked, “Daddy what's
wrong?”

He said that nothing was
wrong. “As soon as mommy
and Tommy get up can we
open our presents?” asked
Tammy.

Tammy knew daddy didn't
really care for opening the
presents. So Tammy went
and woke Tommy and
mommy up and told them
both daddy was here. They
came into the livingroom and
Tammy asked her mom if

DONNA FERREIRA
... third place

so they could all open their
presents together. Their
father told them to go ahead
without him. He would open
his later.

Tammy's mom also noticed
something was wrong with
their father too. As the kids
were still opening their pre-
sents, the parents had a talk.
Tammy's dad said that he
had lost his job and that they
couldn't afford to live in the
apartment.

Tammy's mom and father
were really unhappy. So they
said they weren't going to
tell the kids so as not to ruin
their Christmas. The par-
ents went and opened their
presents to keep their minds
off the bad news.

As they finished unwrap-

they could open their pre- ping their presents, they

sents. But their mother told thanked the

children for

them to wait for their father what they gave them. Their

mom told them to get drass-
ed up really nicely because
they were going out for
Christmas breakfast to their
grandparents. °

As they were getting their
coats on and going out the
door, they heard the tele
phone.

Their father rushed inside
but when he got to the phone
it had stopped ringing. He
had a feeling that it was an
important phone call. So he
went back outside and told
his family that he had a
feeling it was an important
phone call. Suddenly the
phone rang again. It was his

He was so happy and so
was his wife. Who would
have thought that Christmas
would have turned out so
well?

A day to remember

By JODIE DECHKOFF
Age 11

It was Christmas Eve, and
as Tammy looked out the
window it“started to snow.
As she watched the snow fall

she thought about how sad,

and lonely she would be this
Christmas, for she had no ong
to spend it withAlof her
children were living too far
away to come and visit her.
She looked back at the
beautiful tree which she had
decorated that morning and
thonght about the times
when Christmas used to be a
happy time for her; when the

miring the tree and drinking
hot chocolate. Tammy was
seventy years old and
thought that her kids felt she

back at the window to see a
group of Christmas carolers

Thinking
of giving

a pet?
Are you thinking of giv-

singing at a house down the
street. She knew that they
would soon be at her house so
she settled back in her
rocking chair to wait for
them. Slowly the sound of the
singers made Tammy drift
off to sleep.

The next thing Tammy
knew she heard the sound of
knocking. As she sleepily
opened her eyes she realized
it was morning. With the
knocking persisting she
shuffled over and opened the
door. Tammy thought she
was i when she.
heard little voices from below
her saying, “Nana, Nana,
Merry Christmas!" With
tears in her eyes they ex-

settled by the fireplace to tell

each other about the main
events of the year. Tammy
immediately went to the
kitchen and made hot choc-
olate for everybody.

Christmas day went beaut-
ifully. They had a huge tur-
key dinner with lots of cran-
berry sauce. And, although
they did not have many pre-
sents, they all agreed that
the best present of all was
just being together.

That night after everybody
was asleep Tammy sat in her
rocking chair thinking about
the events of the day. This
was definitely a day to
remember. As nod-
ded off to sleep she thought
“Who would have thought

well?”

LAUENER BROS.

JEWELLERS LTD.

JODIE DECHKOFF
... first place

wishes just meant for
you. . . our good

friends.

i.
Zax

et

342-282) ae-s770

Season's Greetings

in tune with our holiday wishes for you and our worm
appreciation.

thanks ond deep
Coctlager Ph. see-cre1 BONNETT’S itis wean

\ 5

Let Christmas fill
your heart with
gladness. Thanks.

The merriest |
of holidays

to you

Chris D'Arcy, MLA

and yours!