Last night we participated in a Jericho neighborhood caroling tradition,for the SECOND TIME! I made some great No-Knead Bread, sliced up some really good Vermont cheddar and some salami, tossed a few beers in a cooler, and we headed over to Jon’s place around the corner. When we arrived a small group of neighbors were gathered around Jon’s Steinway practicing Christmas carols.
Around 6:30, Marty showed up with his truck. It was pretty cold, snow was just beginning to fall, there were NO kids in the group, there were only eight carolers, but we were going to do it just the same. Marty set up his ladder at the back of the truck, we all piled in and huddled together on the bales of hay he had loaded up for seating, and we were off to Jericho Hill Farm. The most memorable part of this tradition is singing to the cows. Last year we went to George’s father’s farm for the last stop and sang to the rear ends of the cows. This year we were going to George’s farm, where we were going to sing to his new Jersey herd. But this time it was to their faces! YEA!
Neighbors Peggy and Becky both agreed I should be the one to start the group off with the right note. For the most part, I performed this task fine, but I realized only shortly before the caroling ended that I was singing WAY too loud. Last year I tried to get a video, but failed. Not this year…
After singing “Silent Night” we did another version of the song, customized by John, with various bovine references. It was pretty funny.
After serenading the cows, we headed off to three homes that had requested caroling. Marty would back his truck as close as he could to the door, the neighbors would come out, we’d stand in the truck bed and sing a carol, then ask for requests. Typically did 4 songs a stop. We’d also carol between stops – one trip took the entire length of 12 Days of Christmas.
After about 40 minutes, I think most of us were really feeling the cold. One caroler, a Dartmouth graduate student from Istanbul, clearly wasn’t dressed appropriately, and told us all her hands were really cold – her gloves looked like they were unlined leather – no good in single digit temperatures.
After about an hour, we returned to Jon’s for hot chocolate and snacks. Neighbor Peggy suggested we might want to start earlier next year in an attempt to get the families with small kids in the neighborhood to join. Marty recalled one time he had 38 in the back of the truck. We have a year to think up some marketing and communications plans to rejuvenate this wonderful neighborhood tradition.
Oh, and to quote the immortal Jose Feliciano:
Feliz Navidad, Feliz Navidad, Feliz Navidad, prospero año y felicidad (repeated like 25 times)…
Todd