Upon clearing his throat, Vincent looked over the children, and repeated, "Anyone?"
And so of course Kipper eagerly raised his hand again!
Well hesitating to call on Kipper for fear it was for some additional unsolicited directives, Vincent relented and questioned, "Kipper? Hopefully you have an idea for the Christmas Card design this time..."
To which Kipper said, "Yeah, well I do have an idea, but before we do the planning, we should sing a Christmas song."
Upon hearing Kipper's comment, well this reminded the other children of the order of things, and so they all chimed in favor of singing as well, even Mary!
Kipper then enforced his case further to a bombarded Vincent, by stating,
"Father says singing puts us in the Holiday Mooood. So if you wanna do it the
way Father does, we should sing a Christmas Carol. But I guess it's your choice since you are in charge of the gig this year."
With a slow nod, and questioning tilt of his head, Vincent asked, "Am I?"
Upon hearing a giggle from Mary and Catherine, Vincent realized he better
check the sarcastic side to his sense of humor, and clearing his throat, he
offered, "By all means, in accordance to sessions past, let us sing!"
And so after deciding on the song, they raised their voices in unison to "We wish you a Merry Christmas!"
After realizing a little singing is quite uplifting, Vincent admitted, "Thank you Children, you sang beautifully. So now that our spirit's are lifted, and our lungs are clear, shall we get to work? Ahem, did you say you had an idea Kipper...I mean for our Christmas Card THIS TIME!"
To which Kipper replied, "Yep, I sure DO!"
With a sigh of relief, Vincent replied, "Then please Kipper...share."
So thoughtfully, Kipper replied, "Well, I was thinking we could have a drawing
of Arthur with a Santa hat on his head!"
To which Vincent asked, "And the scripted sentiment would be?"
In a whimsical demeanor, Kipper recited, "No Monkeying around! Merry
Christmas! Get it? A raccoon sayin' no monkeying around, cuz he's not a
monkey!"
Well this imagery and verse caused the children to erupt in laughter, and even
Catherine and Mary were chuckling too!
So after Vincent shared an amused look with the two ladies, he said, "Thank
you Kipper, normally we do not inject humor into our Christmas Card, but that is not to say this year cannot break that standard. I will be happy to list your fanciful idea up here on the slate."
So after adding Kipper's idea to the board, Vincent then called on Zach, who offered, "Well I was thinking we could make a snowman, using cotton balls for dimension on the front of the card, and inside the card write "Merry Christmas!"
Vincent nodded approvingly, but before he could write it down, Mary excitedly informed him, "Wait Vincent, Father won't allow the use of cotton balls for any more art projects!"
To which Samantha felt inclined to add, "Yeah that's right. Father told us cotton balls are to be used for medical issues, NOT ghosts!"
To which Mary folded her arms, as she sternly professed, "And I agreed! That art project decimated our cotton ball supply, and I wasn't able to re-stock until mid November!"
So because it was duly established the snowman could NOT be made of cotton balls, Vincent suggested, "Well Zach, perhaps we could draw a snowman?"
To which Zach downheartedly said, "Not the same...we need to make the
snowman out of something, we gotta paste something onto the card for
dimension, I gotta have dimension!"
In agreement, Vincent replied, "I see your point..."
Just then Zach expounded, "Hey, I know what we could use instead! We can use buttons from the button box in the sewing chamber! Yeah! Buttons would work!"
So because Mary didn't think the community could spare a single button, with a discerning tone, Mary responded, "Afraid not Zach. I must say no to buttons as well. I need those buttons to sew on britches and such! Remember, we must be practical, and can not use items considered a necessity for our crafting!"
And because Catherine had an idea for Zach, she started to speak, and then held back, not sure if she should butt in. Well our ever intuitive Vincent noticed her angst, and said, "Catherine if you have an idea for Zach, please..."
With a low ebb excitement, Catherine offered, "Well, if it's dimension you need Zach, I know three different ways to achieve this using only paper."
So after Catherine did a quick demo of the three methods, she said, "Hopefully one of these will be to your liking."
With a smile, and tone of excitement, Zach said, "Gee thanks Catherine! I like them all! So Vincent, I'm back in business with my snowman theme."
As Vincent posted Zach idea, he nodded a VERY impressed Thank you to Catherine, and then asked, "Anyone else?"
Next, Samantha stood, and said, "Well...I thought we could cut a Christmas tree out of green construction paper, paste it on the card, and then write Brigit's poem inside!"
And because Vincent liked her idea, he impressively said, "Splendid idea Samantha. I will post your creative suggestion to the list."
Vincent then looked at the children, and asked once again, "Anyone?"
To which little Joseph stood up to say, "I like making stuff with glitter, I think glitter makes everything look like magic!"
With a tilt of his head, Vincent replied, "I think it does as well. And what could we glitter up? Snowflakes perhaps? Ahh yes, snowflakes would be nice."
Contemplating, Joseph replied, "Well I was thinking a star! Like the star of Bethleham...but gee, I don't know what the card would say. Just "Merry Christmas from the Tunnels" I guess."
With an approving tone, Vincent replied, "Sounds fine Joseph, sounds fine..."
And then as Vincent proceeded to write Joseph's idea down, he asked for more ideas.
To which Heather suggested a card with Santa on it, adding, "...and it would say "HO HO HO Merry Christmas."
Just then the children started to speak out, and so Samantha stood to tell Heather, "Good idea Heath, but we did that card before, and one of Father's rules is...we can NOT repeat a theme."
And because he didn't know this rule, Vincent looked to Mary for validation.
And so Mary, nodded, saying, "Yes that's right Vincent, no repeats, we did that theme a few years back."
To which Vincent with an understanding smile in his eyes, told Heather, "Ah before your time, uh? Well keep thinking, and let me know if you would like to share another idea."
With a big smile, Heather said, "I will Vincent."
So next, Eric anxiously raised his hand, and Vincent, in the interest of time, cautioned, "Now Eric, I hope you remember, no themes which would need to host cotton balls, and it must be an original theme!"
To which Eric proudly said, "I do, it doesn't and it is!"
And because Vincent's head was spinning, he needed clarification for Eric's cryptic answer, and so Vincent asked, "You do, it doesn't and it "IS" what?"
With a demeanor indicating Vincent should know what he meant, Eric replied, "I DO remember, IT doesn't have cotton balls, and it IS an original theme!"
To which Vincent who was beginning to feel like he may have bitten off more than he cared to chew this night, replied, "Of course...so ahem...go ahead with your idea Eric...PLEASE go ahead and TELL us your idea."
With a prideful stance, Eric said, "I thought we could draw an outline of New York City, and on the card we would write, Merry Christmas from down under, and we don't mean Australia!"
With a smile in his eyes, Vincent nodded as he told Eric, "Quite cleaver!"
In reply, Eric proudly said, "Thanks Vincent! And the card accomplishes three things, #1, it has a Christmas message, #2, it gives a clue of where we live, and #3, it ties in with our geography lesson, since we were talking about Australia."
To which Vincent agreeably, yet reciprocally said, "Indeed it has, it did, and it does."
As Eric looked puzzled for a moment, he then laughed as he pointed his finger at Vincent, and said, "Awe I get it!"
With a tip of his head, indicating he knew Eric would indeed "get it", Vincent then asked the other children, "Any more ideas?" It was then when wee Natalie, anxiously waved her little hand, and so as Vincent called on her, he asked, "What is your idea Natalie?"
And so as Natalie stood up to speak, she fussily adjusted her dress, and said, "I like the story of the little Drummer Boy a whole bunch, so we could draw him on the card, and then write "Merry Christmas" on it."
Nodding, Vincent decidedly liked the story of the Little Drummer Boy too! And just so you know, it was not because he had been the Little Drummer Boy in a Christmas play as a child, but it was because the Little Drummer Boy's humble gift, was a relevant theme, and quite symbolic of the meager offerings they, of the tunnel community would have to give.
Though still...Vincent wanted to know why Natalie chose the drummer boy theme, and so he asked, "What is your reason for choosing the Little Drummer Boy Natalie?"
As Natalie put her thoughts together, she rolled her eyes while she finally expressed, "Cuz, he shared all he had...like Father tells us to do."
Warmed by Natalie's answer, Vincent kindly said, "I like your suggestion very much Natalie, even more so because of your reason behind it. Thank you. I will put your idea on the list with the others."
Overwhelmed by sweet little Natalie's answer, Mary turned to Catherine, and proudly whispered, "Out of the mouth's of babes....I only wish Father could have been here to hear Natalie's explanation. I must relay this to him when he returns home."
In agreement, Catherine smiled and said, "Yes, that should make him feel very proud."
The two women then turned their attention back to Vincent, who was doing such a wonderful job, conducting this discussion with the children.
And while Vincent continued, Catherine could not help but to think, what an intriguing man he was! And she thought that even though he has at times, had issues which stemmed from being so different, he did not show any signs of self-consciousness in times such as this. In his world, he stood strong, sure and confident.
Perhaps it was the assurance of being among people he knew loved him.
In fact, Catherine knew how empowering that feeling can be, when she would be amongst her family and small circle of friends. It felt wonderful to laugh freely, and to own that comfortable state of being as one with them.
Snapping out of her introspective thoughts, she then tuned back to what Vincent was saying to his rapt young audience.
Vincent then looked around the group of children, and asked, "Any other suggestions? How about you Heather, did you come up with an alternate idea?"
To which Heather eagerly said, "Nothing that would be better than Natalie's theme! I really like the Little Drummer Boy!"
With a nod of affirmation, Vincent asked, "Than shall we vote?"
And so they did, and they all agreed to having Natalie's Little Drummer Boy as the theme.
Different sketches were then tried, until ultimately Catherine came up with a Drummer Boy design everyone could draw directly onto the card, and so she instructed, "I thought we could cut a drum out of the thicker cardboard, and paste it onto the Drummer boy, achieving the dimensional look Zach wanted so much. And then I thought we could also cut out a star of Bethlehem, along with some snowflakes and add glitter to them, as per Joseph and Vincent's suggestion creating a snowy scene."
Everyone raved over Catherine's idea, and so excitedly they began the actual work on the cards.
So it was, that Catherine, Mary and Vincent made rounds to each child, overseeing as they cut out their drums, stars and snowflakes, and pasting them onto the Drummer Boy sketches they had done.
Of course Vincent was drawn to Natalie's side, and as he stooped down to her level, he asked, "How are you doing Natalie?"
Smiling widely, Natalie said, "Very good Vincent. Cept I need help with the letters."
Pleased to help, Vincent then assisted Natalie in writing the sentiment on the cover of the first card, so she would have a pattern to follow for the rest of the cards she had to make.
Vincent then stopped to help the next child, and between he, Mary and Catherine, the project was joyfully completed.
And so just like clock work, William along with Jamie, Laura and Brooke arrived, ready to serve cookies along with Hot Chocolate for the children, to which they all squealed with delight.
These moments always bolstered William, as he truly felt loved and appreciated by the little munchkins as they thanked and hugged him.
But because he had kitchen duties to get back to, William said to everyone, "Enjoy the cookies Kids, but don't eat too many, you have to save room for supper, oh and before I go..."
William began to laugh uncontrollably as he teasingly said, "...Vincent nice hat! Ha ha ha hee hee hee, priceless! I don't know who looks better in it, you or Jacob! Ha ha ha hee hee hee..."
Well after the levity died down, and after the cookies and hot chocolate were passed out, Vincent lovingly looked about at all the children, when Kipper instructed, "Hey Vincent, this is when you should read us a Christmas story, Father always does when we get the snack from William."
With a raised brow, Vincent replied, "Thank you for the reminder Kipper, ahh, I believe I know just what I'll read."
So as per tradition, a Christmas story was read to the children. And because of the theme of the Christmas Card, Vincent read the story of the Little Drummer boy to the children.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile, Jessica welcomed the three senior studs into her penthouse, and after she took their coats, she asked the gentlemen, if they wouldn't mind dining in, instead of going out.
Jessica then explained, she, Sylvia and Evelyn, were exhausted from their busy day, and wanted to have a relaxing evening at home.
And so, as it turned out, Jessica's suggestion was met with unanimous enthusiasm, and they all opted to dine within her beautifully holiday decorated New York City penthouse apartment, that proudly boasted a panoramic view of the city.
Jessica then offered everyone drinks, and set out the appetizers she had herself prepared, however...their dinner would be delivered, via the Pampered Pallet!
Yes, the evening was full of food, drink and Holiday music, and everyone was having a lovely, fun and easy evening, even Jacob!
However, because music being what it is, and can move us in unexpected ways, as the Little Drummer Boy played over the stereo, the familiar tune struck Jacob in a deep place, and he grew pensive.
And so as Jacob walked to the window and looked out over the city, the ever observant Jessica, watched him as he stood quietly alone. Hesitantly she approached him and sweetly asked, "A penny for your thoughts..."
Forcing a smile for her, Jacob softly said, "This song...reminded me of Vincent....of a time when he was a very small boy, and he sang this song with the other children in a Christmas pageant they performed for the community."
Sadly Jacob reflected back, and then recalled, "There he stood, this wild haired, beautiful smiling unique child, playing the drum, looking just so happy...too young to be aware he was different from the other children, different from everyone..."
Jacob then narrowed his eyes, as he shared, "...and as I watched him...the realization suddenly struck me, one day he would understand he was different, and sadly lose the carefree aspect to his spirit of which he so sweetly owned...and well, that thought literally broke my heart that day."
Jacob then frowned as he expressed, "I could not help but wonder what would happen to him, should we ever be forced to vacate the tunnels."
With a loving tone, Jessica rationalized, "Ah, but you never had to leave Jacob, and you created a wonderful world for Vincent. He is truly an extraordinarily kind man. And now he has Catherine, who clearly loves him very much. His life seems to hold no boundaries, and thanks to you, he has a rich full life."
As Jacob searched Jessica's eyes, he then with wonder, inquired, "How do you manage to do it?"
To which Jessica cluelessly asked, "Do what Dear Jacob?"
With a sigh, Jacob replied, "Turn a melancholy old man into a thankful one, by seeing the positive. Ah but then...you always could."
Jacob then sincerely asked, "Where have the years gone Jessica? It seems as though it was only yesterday that Vincent was that small boy, and then too, when we were contemplating a life together."
With a look of awe, Jessica responded, "I assure you I don't know. Only yesterday, I was this attractive young women who turned your head...and now I look into the mirror, and I wonder who is that old woman that's looking back at me!"
Touching her cheek, Jacob sincerely said, "Jessica, you are as beautiful as ever, and you still turn my head. It is I however, on the other hand who has grown old..."
To which Jessica lovingly held Jacob's hand in place as she said, "Not so. You are still the same incredibly handsome man you were all those years ago."
But because Jacob's melancholy still encompassed him, Jessica kindly asked, "What is it that is really bothering you Jacob. What has you so thoughtful tonight?"
Jacob looked back at Jessica, and wondered how honest he really could be, without hurting her.
And so Jacob hesitantly said, "Jessica...I love being with you, if truth be known, I enjoy it immensely...and no man could ask for a more caring and beautiful companion."
Halting for a moment, he then gathered his thoughts, and continued, "However...because of our plans tonight, I am neglecting a holiday tradition with the children. And so, I suppose the disappointment I caused Mary and the children may have put a bit of a damper on this evening for me. So please tell me I am forgiven, for harboring these woes."
With a tragic smile, Jessica answered, "There is nothing to forgive Jacob."
And then Jessica added, "After all these years, I know your heart is with the tunnels, and all who dwell there...including Mary. That is one of the things I love so much about you...the way you care so deeply for everyone. And truthfully...I do own a twinge of jealousy toward your beloved tunnel community because of your devotion to them, but I am resigned to enjoy what ever time you are able to give me."
Sorrowfully Jacob looked at Jessica, and said, "You give me so much...and I...am able to give you so little."
In reply Jessica sweetly said, "Untrue Jacob...you give me more...than you could ever know."
Jessica then kissed his hand, and told him, "Telling me that story about Vincent as a small boy tonight, had been a most generous gift. It brought about a peace to my heart, enabling me to better understand why you could never have left the tunnels, not for me...not for anyone. Its existence was imperative for Vincent to live a happy life."
With a thoughtful nod, Jacob validated what Jessica had said, and feeling thankful she really did fully understand now, why he had chosen his life's path.
Jacob then turned to thoughtfully look out of the window once more, to which she followed suit, and sweetly he reached over and put his arm around her waist and contentedly, they quietly stood together and looked over the snow covered city.
Both realizing their relationship has been a well chartered subject, to which there was no resolve, and that for them there would never be anything more, than this. Jessica would continue in the world above, and Jacob would always out of devoted dedication, return to his world below.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Meanwhile as the Christmas Card Session wound down, Vincent put the book away on the shelf, and turning firstly to Mary, he did a subtle nod, and then to the children, he finalized the session as he said, "The cards are all superb! And in a few days after the paste dries, they should be ready for delivery. I just want to express, how proud I am of each and every one of you, for your efforts in this endeavor."
To which Kipper in response, said, "Hey Vincent...you didn't do too bad filling in for Father and glad you put on the hat!"
This comment began a barrage of compliments from the rest of the children, to which Vincent humbly said, "Thank you Children, however I would be remiss if I didn't thank you Kipper, ahem...for all of your...ahem...help, and we need to thank Mary and Catherine as well."
Now with the accolades directed toward Catherine and Mary, the two ladies smiled, and it was Mary who offered, "Indeed, we along with you children did our best without Father at the helm."
Catherine too felt inclined to chime in saying, "I'm just so thankful you allowed me to help, and for making me feel so welcome."
And so meantime, Brooke, Jamie and Laura arrived to gather the children so they can wash up for supper. But before they left, Samantha approached Catherine, and said, "It sure was fun having you help us Catherine...you seem to know a lot about crafts and stuff."
To which Catherine said, "Thank you Samantha, I guess everything I know is due to my 4th grade art teacher...she was so creative...gosh, I haven't thought of Mrs. Stewart in ages. Hmm, I wonder where she is now..."
And then Catherine sweetly suggested, "Maybe we can plan on doing another art project sometime soon..."
To which Samantha excitedly said, "I would like that. Well see ya at supper!"
And meanwhile, Natalie lagged a bit, to which Vincent mentioned, "Natalie, you should hurry, you don't want to be left behind."
And so Vincent took her hand, and stepped to the threshold, and he was happy to see that Brooke was waiting for her. And so Vincent thanked Brooke for being so astute, keeping track of the youngsters, to which Brooke smiled and said, "I always watch out for Natalie..."
Then with a big sister-like manner, Brooke took the little girl's hand, and said, "Come on along Natalie, let's go and catch up with the others."
And so it was after all the children had gone, that Mary plopped down in a chair, she looked at Catherine and Vincent and said, "Whew...what a time."
Responding in kind, Catherine and Vincent then sat down too, agreeing with Mary, as they three felt enriched by their time with the children, they all knew it had been a special time they would fondly look back upon with joy.
As Vincent took off the hat, he looked at it and said, "Yes indeed, this is quite a hat the children made me wear."
And then looking suspiciously at Mary, Vincent insinuated, "And...I must admit, I am finding it hard to imagine Father wearing it, even for the children."
To which Mary replied, "Well he does, truly he does. Ever since Peter gave it to him as a sort of a lark several years ago, the children demanded Father wear it for the Christmas Card Session...and so he has."
And then Catherine smiled saying, "Well I thought it was so sweet of you to pop it on Vincent...and it sure made all the children happy."
With a look, Vincent nodded a thank you, and then turning toward Mary, Vincent teased, "Still, you might have mentioned this was part of the tradition Mary when I volunteered."
To which Mary giggled as she replied, "I had honestly forgot about it!"
With a look, Vincent responded, "Ah, but the children didn't."
It was then Mary cleared her throat, and hesitantly asked, "Speaking of forgetting Vincent...do you suppose the children forgot all about the telling of The First Tunnel Christmas Story?"
With a tip of his head, Vincent replied, "Eventually they will realize it wasn't told Mary..."
To which Mary expressed, "I wasn't sure if I should remind you, but then when you were putting the book away, indicating it was the end of the session, and gave me a nod of sorts, well I realized you hadn't forgotten, but rather, you had purposefully omitted the story! And I thought to my self, Brilliant Vincent, Brilliant!"
In response, with a tip of his head, Vincent questioned, "If you allow me Mary, I am thinking omitted, sounds contrived. So how about when asked, we utilize the word forgotten instead when asked about THE missing link of the evening..."
Bringing her finger to her widening grin, Mary deviously said, "Perhaps forgotten is a better word, after all you ARE new at this and you were only filling in..."
To which Catherine giggled a bit as she said, "Hmmm, and to think of how close I was to foiling your whole plan."
Wondering how, Vincent asked, "Catherine?"
Explaining, Catherine said, "Because of the fact that I wanted to hear the First Tunnel Christmas Story myself, I nearly reminded you in front of the children! Maybe you should have filled me in of the plan BEFORE the session."
As Mary chuckled, Vincent confessed, "Truth be told I wasn't sure what the plan was then, however as the session evolved, it occurred to me to fall short somewhere in a major way, and the NOT telling of the story became paramount, it was the key."
Clarifying, Catherine with a smile said, "Sooooo, since you didn't tell the story, then Father still has the chance to."
But before they could further discuss, both Mouse and Rebecca popped into the chamber, and Rebecca smiled noting, "We just passed the Children, and they were singing and giggling away. Can we assume all went well?"
So after both Rebecca and Mouse were told the session went very well, Rebecca then looked around and said, "Oh my! Quite a mess!"
And because of Rebecca's comment, the three looked about at the remains of the session, and realized...they DID have quite a mess!
And so after seeing how tuckered out they all looked, Rebecca asked, "Want some help cleaning up?"
To which Mary exclaimed, "You Sweet Girl! YES we sure do!"
And then because he wanted to be included, Mouse offered, "I'll help too."
With a smile toward her, at times "nemesis" Mary replied, "That's splendid Mouse! Splendid. Yes the more the merrier, and it won't be long until supper."
And so as they tidied up, Vincent told Mary, Mouse and Rebecca of their plans to gather Catherine's things from her apartment after supper, and then said, "I plan on informing Pascal as well."
With concern Rebecca asked, "But what if that evil man is lurking about, waiting to harm Catherine! I mean will you two be safe?"
To which Vincent assured them they would be traveling with several sentries for protection.
Wanting to help protect Catherine too, Mouse responded, "Gotta go too Vincent. Help keep Catherine safe."
Thinking Mouse was so sweet, Catherine's heart broke a little bit because of his protectiveness. And after sharing a look with Vincent, Mary and Rebecca, she swiped a tear away.
Knowing he didn't want Mouse to be in any kind of danger, Vincent replied, "You must stay here in my place Mouse. With Father up top, some one of authority must be here. So you along with Pascal, must oversee things till I return."
With a nod, Mouse then stood a bit taller as he said, "O.K. fine Vincent."
And so with the Christmas Card Session successfully behind them, and with the completion of the evening meal, Catherine and Vincent prepared themselves for going above.
To be continued
Chapter Twenty
And so of course Kipper eagerly raised his hand again!
Well hesitating to call on Kipper for fear it was for some additional unsolicited directives, Vincent relented and questioned, "Kipper? Hopefully you have an idea for the Christmas Card design this time..."
To which Kipper said, "Yeah, well I do have an idea, but before we do the planning, we should sing a Christmas song."
Upon hearing Kipper's comment, well this reminded the other children of the order of things, and so they all chimed in favor of singing as well, even Mary!
Kipper then enforced his case further to a bombarded Vincent, by stating,
"Father says singing puts us in the Holiday Mooood. So if you wanna do it the
way Father does, we should sing a Christmas Carol. But I guess it's your choice since you are in charge of the gig this year."
With a slow nod, and questioning tilt of his head, Vincent asked, "Am I?"
Upon hearing a giggle from Mary and Catherine, Vincent realized he better
check the sarcastic side to his sense of humor, and clearing his throat, he
offered, "By all means, in accordance to sessions past, let us sing!"
And so after deciding on the song, they raised their voices in unison to "We wish you a Merry Christmas!"
After realizing a little singing is quite uplifting, Vincent admitted, "Thank you Children, you sang beautifully. So now that our spirit's are lifted, and our lungs are clear, shall we get to work? Ahem, did you say you had an idea Kipper...I mean for our Christmas Card THIS TIME!"
To which Kipper replied, "Yep, I sure DO!"
With a sigh of relief, Vincent replied, "Then please Kipper...share."
So thoughtfully, Kipper replied, "Well, I was thinking we could have a drawing
of Arthur with a Santa hat on his head!"
To which Vincent asked, "And the scripted sentiment would be?"
In a whimsical demeanor, Kipper recited, "No Monkeying around! Merry
Christmas! Get it? A raccoon sayin' no monkeying around, cuz he's not a
monkey!"
Well this imagery and verse caused the children to erupt in laughter, and even
Catherine and Mary were chuckling too!
So after Vincent shared an amused look with the two ladies, he said, "Thank
you Kipper, normally we do not inject humor into our Christmas Card, but that is not to say this year cannot break that standard. I will be happy to list your fanciful idea up here on the slate."
So after adding Kipper's idea to the board, Vincent then called on Zach, who offered, "Well I was thinking we could make a snowman, using cotton balls for dimension on the front of the card, and inside the card write "Merry Christmas!"
Vincent nodded approvingly, but before he could write it down, Mary excitedly informed him, "Wait Vincent, Father won't allow the use of cotton balls for any more art projects!"
To which Samantha felt inclined to add, "Yeah that's right. Father told us cotton balls are to be used for medical issues, NOT ghosts!"
To which Mary folded her arms, as she sternly professed, "And I agreed! That art project decimated our cotton ball supply, and I wasn't able to re-stock until mid November!"
So because it was duly established the snowman could NOT be made of cotton balls, Vincent suggested, "Well Zach, perhaps we could draw a snowman?"
To which Zach downheartedly said, "Not the same...we need to make the
snowman out of something, we gotta paste something onto the card for
dimension, I gotta have dimension!"
In agreement, Vincent replied, "I see your point..."
Just then Zach expounded, "Hey, I know what we could use instead! We can use buttons from the button box in the sewing chamber! Yeah! Buttons would work!"
So because Mary didn't think the community could spare a single button, with a discerning tone, Mary responded, "Afraid not Zach. I must say no to buttons as well. I need those buttons to sew on britches and such! Remember, we must be practical, and can not use items considered a necessity for our crafting!"
And because Catherine had an idea for Zach, she started to speak, and then held back, not sure if she should butt in. Well our ever intuitive Vincent noticed her angst, and said, "Catherine if you have an idea for Zach, please..."
With a low ebb excitement, Catherine offered, "Well, if it's dimension you need Zach, I know three different ways to achieve this using only paper."
So after Catherine did a quick demo of the three methods, she said, "Hopefully one of these will be to your liking."
With a smile, and tone of excitement, Zach said, "Gee thanks Catherine! I like them all! So Vincent, I'm back in business with my snowman theme."
As Vincent posted Zach idea, he nodded a VERY impressed Thank you to Catherine, and then asked, "Anyone else?"
Next, Samantha stood, and said, "Well...I thought we could cut a Christmas tree out of green construction paper, paste it on the card, and then write Brigit's poem inside!"
And because Vincent liked her idea, he impressively said, "Splendid idea Samantha. I will post your creative suggestion to the list."
Vincent then looked at the children, and asked once again, "Anyone?"
To which little Joseph stood up to say, "I like making stuff with glitter, I think glitter makes everything look like magic!"
With a tilt of his head, Vincent replied, "I think it does as well. And what could we glitter up? Snowflakes perhaps? Ahh yes, snowflakes would be nice."
Contemplating, Joseph replied, "Well I was thinking a star! Like the star of Bethleham...but gee, I don't know what the card would say. Just "Merry Christmas from the Tunnels" I guess."
With an approving tone, Vincent replied, "Sounds fine Joseph, sounds fine..."
And then as Vincent proceeded to write Joseph's idea down, he asked for more ideas.
To which Heather suggested a card with Santa on it, adding, "...and it would say "HO HO HO Merry Christmas."
Just then the children started to speak out, and so Samantha stood to tell Heather, "Good idea Heath, but we did that card before, and one of Father's rules is...we can NOT repeat a theme."
And because he didn't know this rule, Vincent looked to Mary for validation.
And so Mary, nodded, saying, "Yes that's right Vincent, no repeats, we did that theme a few years back."
To which Vincent with an understanding smile in his eyes, told Heather, "Ah before your time, uh? Well keep thinking, and let me know if you would like to share another idea."
With a big smile, Heather said, "I will Vincent."
So next, Eric anxiously raised his hand, and Vincent, in the interest of time, cautioned, "Now Eric, I hope you remember, no themes which would need to host cotton balls, and it must be an original theme!"
To which Eric proudly said, "I do, it doesn't and it is!"
And because Vincent's head was spinning, he needed clarification for Eric's cryptic answer, and so Vincent asked, "You do, it doesn't and it "IS" what?"
With a demeanor indicating Vincent should know what he meant, Eric replied, "I DO remember, IT doesn't have cotton balls, and it IS an original theme!"
To which Vincent who was beginning to feel like he may have bitten off more than he cared to chew this night, replied, "Of course...so ahem...go ahead with your idea Eric...PLEASE go ahead and TELL us your idea."
With a prideful stance, Eric said, "I thought we could draw an outline of New York City, and on the card we would write, Merry Christmas from down under, and we don't mean Australia!"
With a smile in his eyes, Vincent nodded as he told Eric, "Quite cleaver!"
In reply, Eric proudly said, "Thanks Vincent! And the card accomplishes three things, #1, it has a Christmas message, #2, it gives a clue of where we live, and #3, it ties in with our geography lesson, since we were talking about Australia."
To which Vincent agreeably, yet reciprocally said, "Indeed it has, it did, and it does."
As Eric looked puzzled for a moment, he then laughed as he pointed his finger at Vincent, and said, "Awe I get it!"
With a tip of his head, indicating he knew Eric would indeed "get it", Vincent then asked the other children, "Any more ideas?" It was then when wee Natalie, anxiously waved her little hand, and so as Vincent called on her, he asked, "What is your idea Natalie?"
And so as Natalie stood up to speak, she fussily adjusted her dress, and said, "I like the story of the little Drummer Boy a whole bunch, so we could draw him on the card, and then write "Merry Christmas" on it."
Nodding, Vincent decidedly liked the story of the Little Drummer Boy too! And just so you know, it was not because he had been the Little Drummer Boy in a Christmas play as a child, but it was because the Little Drummer Boy's humble gift, was a relevant theme, and quite symbolic of the meager offerings they, of the tunnel community would have to give.
Though still...Vincent wanted to know why Natalie chose the drummer boy theme, and so he asked, "What is your reason for choosing the Little Drummer Boy Natalie?"
As Natalie put her thoughts together, she rolled her eyes while she finally expressed, "Cuz, he shared all he had...like Father tells us to do."
Warmed by Natalie's answer, Vincent kindly said, "I like your suggestion very much Natalie, even more so because of your reason behind it. Thank you. I will put your idea on the list with the others."
Overwhelmed by sweet little Natalie's answer, Mary turned to Catherine, and proudly whispered, "Out of the mouth's of babes....I only wish Father could have been here to hear Natalie's explanation. I must relay this to him when he returns home."
In agreement, Catherine smiled and said, "Yes, that should make him feel very proud."
The two women then turned their attention back to Vincent, who was doing such a wonderful job, conducting this discussion with the children.
And while Vincent continued, Catherine could not help but to think, what an intriguing man he was! And she thought that even though he has at times, had issues which stemmed from being so different, he did not show any signs of self-consciousness in times such as this. In his world, he stood strong, sure and confident.
Perhaps it was the assurance of being among people he knew loved him.
In fact, Catherine knew how empowering that feeling can be, when she would be amongst her family and small circle of friends. It felt wonderful to laugh freely, and to own that comfortable state of being as one with them.
Snapping out of her introspective thoughts, she then tuned back to what Vincent was saying to his rapt young audience.
Vincent then looked around the group of children, and asked, "Any other suggestions? How about you Heather, did you come up with an alternate idea?"
To which Heather eagerly said, "Nothing that would be better than Natalie's theme! I really like the Little Drummer Boy!"
With a nod of affirmation, Vincent asked, "Than shall we vote?"
And so they did, and they all agreed to having Natalie's Little Drummer Boy as the theme.
Different sketches were then tried, until ultimately Catherine came up with a Drummer Boy design everyone could draw directly onto the card, and so she instructed, "I thought we could cut a drum out of the thicker cardboard, and paste it onto the Drummer boy, achieving the dimensional look Zach wanted so much. And then I thought we could also cut out a star of Bethlehem, along with some snowflakes and add glitter to them, as per Joseph and Vincent's suggestion creating a snowy scene."
Everyone raved over Catherine's idea, and so excitedly they began the actual work on the cards.
So it was, that Catherine, Mary and Vincent made rounds to each child, overseeing as they cut out their drums, stars and snowflakes, and pasting them onto the Drummer Boy sketches they had done.
Of course Vincent was drawn to Natalie's side, and as he stooped down to her level, he asked, "How are you doing Natalie?"
Smiling widely, Natalie said, "Very good Vincent. Cept I need help with the letters."
Pleased to help, Vincent then assisted Natalie in writing the sentiment on the cover of the first card, so she would have a pattern to follow for the rest of the cards she had to make.
Vincent then stopped to help the next child, and between he, Mary and Catherine, the project was joyfully completed.
And so just like clock work, William along with Jamie, Laura and Brooke arrived, ready to serve cookies along with Hot Chocolate for the children, to which they all squealed with delight.
These moments always bolstered William, as he truly felt loved and appreciated by the little munchkins as they thanked and hugged him.
But because he had kitchen duties to get back to, William said to everyone, "Enjoy the cookies Kids, but don't eat too many, you have to save room for supper, oh and before I go..."
William began to laugh uncontrollably as he teasingly said, "...Vincent nice hat! Ha ha ha hee hee hee, priceless! I don't know who looks better in it, you or Jacob! Ha ha ha hee hee hee..."
Well after the levity died down, and after the cookies and hot chocolate were passed out, Vincent lovingly looked about at all the children, when Kipper instructed, "Hey Vincent, this is when you should read us a Christmas story, Father always does when we get the snack from William."
With a raised brow, Vincent replied, "Thank you for the reminder Kipper, ahh, I believe I know just what I'll read."
So as per tradition, a Christmas story was read to the children. And because of the theme of the Christmas Card, Vincent read the story of the Little Drummer boy to the children.
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Meanwhile, Jessica welcomed the three senior studs into her penthouse, and after she took their coats, she asked the gentlemen, if they wouldn't mind dining in, instead of going out.
Jessica then explained, she, Sylvia and Evelyn, were exhausted from their busy day, and wanted to have a relaxing evening at home.
And so, as it turned out, Jessica's suggestion was met with unanimous enthusiasm, and they all opted to dine within her beautifully holiday decorated New York City penthouse apartment, that proudly boasted a panoramic view of the city.
Jessica then offered everyone drinks, and set out the appetizers she had herself prepared, however...their dinner would be delivered, via the Pampered Pallet!
Yes, the evening was full of food, drink and Holiday music, and everyone was having a lovely, fun and easy evening, even Jacob!
However, because music being what it is, and can move us in unexpected ways, as the Little Drummer Boy played over the stereo, the familiar tune struck Jacob in a deep place, and he grew pensive.
And so as Jacob walked to the window and looked out over the city, the ever observant Jessica, watched him as he stood quietly alone. Hesitantly she approached him and sweetly asked, "A penny for your thoughts..."
Forcing a smile for her, Jacob softly said, "This song...reminded me of Vincent....of a time when he was a very small boy, and he sang this song with the other children in a Christmas pageant they performed for the community."
Sadly Jacob reflected back, and then recalled, "There he stood, this wild haired, beautiful smiling unique child, playing the drum, looking just so happy...too young to be aware he was different from the other children, different from everyone..."
Jacob then narrowed his eyes, as he shared, "...and as I watched him...the realization suddenly struck me, one day he would understand he was different, and sadly lose the carefree aspect to his spirit of which he so sweetly owned...and well, that thought literally broke my heart that day."
Jacob then frowned as he expressed, "I could not help but wonder what would happen to him, should we ever be forced to vacate the tunnels."
With a loving tone, Jessica rationalized, "Ah, but you never had to leave Jacob, and you created a wonderful world for Vincent. He is truly an extraordinarily kind man. And now he has Catherine, who clearly loves him very much. His life seems to hold no boundaries, and thanks to you, he has a rich full life."
As Jacob searched Jessica's eyes, he then with wonder, inquired, "How do you manage to do it?"
To which Jessica cluelessly asked, "Do what Dear Jacob?"
With a sigh, Jacob replied, "Turn a melancholy old man into a thankful one, by seeing the positive. Ah but then...you always could."
Jacob then sincerely asked, "Where have the years gone Jessica? It seems as though it was only yesterday that Vincent was that small boy, and then too, when we were contemplating a life together."
With a look of awe, Jessica responded, "I assure you I don't know. Only yesterday, I was this attractive young women who turned your head...and now I look into the mirror, and I wonder who is that old woman that's looking back at me!"
Touching her cheek, Jacob sincerely said, "Jessica, you are as beautiful as ever, and you still turn my head. It is I however, on the other hand who has grown old..."
To which Jessica lovingly held Jacob's hand in place as she said, "Not so. You are still the same incredibly handsome man you were all those years ago."
But because Jacob's melancholy still encompassed him, Jessica kindly asked, "What is it that is really bothering you Jacob. What has you so thoughtful tonight?"
Jacob looked back at Jessica, and wondered how honest he really could be, without hurting her.
And so Jacob hesitantly said, "Jessica...I love being with you, if truth be known, I enjoy it immensely...and no man could ask for a more caring and beautiful companion."
Halting for a moment, he then gathered his thoughts, and continued, "However...because of our plans tonight, I am neglecting a holiday tradition with the children. And so, I suppose the disappointment I caused Mary and the children may have put a bit of a damper on this evening for me. So please tell me I am forgiven, for harboring these woes."
With a tragic smile, Jessica answered, "There is nothing to forgive Jacob."
And then Jessica added, "After all these years, I know your heart is with the tunnels, and all who dwell there...including Mary. That is one of the things I love so much about you...the way you care so deeply for everyone. And truthfully...I do own a twinge of jealousy toward your beloved tunnel community because of your devotion to them, but I am resigned to enjoy what ever time you are able to give me."
Sorrowfully Jacob looked at Jessica, and said, "You give me so much...and I...am able to give you so little."
In reply Jessica sweetly said, "Untrue Jacob...you give me more...than you could ever know."
Jessica then kissed his hand, and told him, "Telling me that story about Vincent as a small boy tonight, had been a most generous gift. It brought about a peace to my heart, enabling me to better understand why you could never have left the tunnels, not for me...not for anyone. Its existence was imperative for Vincent to live a happy life."
With a thoughtful nod, Jacob validated what Jessica had said, and feeling thankful she really did fully understand now, why he had chosen his life's path.
Jacob then turned to thoughtfully look out of the window once more, to which she followed suit, and sweetly he reached over and put his arm around her waist and contentedly, they quietly stood together and looked over the snow covered city.
Both realizing their relationship has been a well chartered subject, to which there was no resolve, and that for them there would never be anything more, than this. Jessica would continue in the world above, and Jacob would always out of devoted dedication, return to his world below.
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Meanwhile as the Christmas Card Session wound down, Vincent put the book away on the shelf, and turning firstly to Mary, he did a subtle nod, and then to the children, he finalized the session as he said, "The cards are all superb! And in a few days after the paste dries, they should be ready for delivery. I just want to express, how proud I am of each and every one of you, for your efforts in this endeavor."
To which Kipper in response, said, "Hey Vincent...you didn't do too bad filling in for Father and glad you put on the hat!"
This comment began a barrage of compliments from the rest of the children, to which Vincent humbly said, "Thank you Children, however I would be remiss if I didn't thank you Kipper, ahem...for all of your...ahem...help, and we need to thank Mary and Catherine as well."
Now with the accolades directed toward Catherine and Mary, the two ladies smiled, and it was Mary who offered, "Indeed, we along with you children did our best without Father at the helm."
Catherine too felt inclined to chime in saying, "I'm just so thankful you allowed me to help, and for making me feel so welcome."
And so meantime, Brooke, Jamie and Laura arrived to gather the children so they can wash up for supper. But before they left, Samantha approached Catherine, and said, "It sure was fun having you help us Catherine...you seem to know a lot about crafts and stuff."
To which Catherine said, "Thank you Samantha, I guess everything I know is due to my 4th grade art teacher...she was so creative...gosh, I haven't thought of Mrs. Stewart in ages. Hmm, I wonder where she is now..."
And then Catherine sweetly suggested, "Maybe we can plan on doing another art project sometime soon..."
To which Samantha excitedly said, "I would like that. Well see ya at supper!"
And meanwhile, Natalie lagged a bit, to which Vincent mentioned, "Natalie, you should hurry, you don't want to be left behind."
And so Vincent took her hand, and stepped to the threshold, and he was happy to see that Brooke was waiting for her. And so Vincent thanked Brooke for being so astute, keeping track of the youngsters, to which Brooke smiled and said, "I always watch out for Natalie..."
Then with a big sister-like manner, Brooke took the little girl's hand, and said, "Come on along Natalie, let's go and catch up with the others."
And so it was after all the children had gone, that Mary plopped down in a chair, she looked at Catherine and Vincent and said, "Whew...what a time."
Responding in kind, Catherine and Vincent then sat down too, agreeing with Mary, as they three felt enriched by their time with the children, they all knew it had been a special time they would fondly look back upon with joy.
As Vincent took off the hat, he looked at it and said, "Yes indeed, this is quite a hat the children made me wear."
And then looking suspiciously at Mary, Vincent insinuated, "And...I must admit, I am finding it hard to imagine Father wearing it, even for the children."
To which Mary replied, "Well he does, truly he does. Ever since Peter gave it to him as a sort of a lark several years ago, the children demanded Father wear it for the Christmas Card Session...and so he has."
And then Catherine smiled saying, "Well I thought it was so sweet of you to pop it on Vincent...and it sure made all the children happy."
With a look, Vincent nodded a thank you, and then turning toward Mary, Vincent teased, "Still, you might have mentioned this was part of the tradition Mary when I volunteered."
To which Mary giggled as she replied, "I had honestly forgot about it!"
With a look, Vincent responded, "Ah, but the children didn't."
It was then Mary cleared her throat, and hesitantly asked, "Speaking of forgetting Vincent...do you suppose the children forgot all about the telling of The First Tunnel Christmas Story?"
With a tip of his head, Vincent replied, "Eventually they will realize it wasn't told Mary..."
To which Mary expressed, "I wasn't sure if I should remind you, but then when you were putting the book away, indicating it was the end of the session, and gave me a nod of sorts, well I realized you hadn't forgotten, but rather, you had purposefully omitted the story! And I thought to my self, Brilliant Vincent, Brilliant!"
In response, with a tip of his head, Vincent questioned, "If you allow me Mary, I am thinking omitted, sounds contrived. So how about when asked, we utilize the word forgotten instead when asked about THE missing link of the evening..."
Bringing her finger to her widening grin, Mary deviously said, "Perhaps forgotten is a better word, after all you ARE new at this and you were only filling in..."
To which Catherine giggled a bit as she said, "Hmmm, and to think of how close I was to foiling your whole plan."
Wondering how, Vincent asked, "Catherine?"
Explaining, Catherine said, "Because of the fact that I wanted to hear the First Tunnel Christmas Story myself, I nearly reminded you in front of the children! Maybe you should have filled me in of the plan BEFORE the session."
As Mary chuckled, Vincent confessed, "Truth be told I wasn't sure what the plan was then, however as the session evolved, it occurred to me to fall short somewhere in a major way, and the NOT telling of the story became paramount, it was the key."
Clarifying, Catherine with a smile said, "Sooooo, since you didn't tell the story, then Father still has the chance to."
But before they could further discuss, both Mouse and Rebecca popped into the chamber, and Rebecca smiled noting, "We just passed the Children, and they were singing and giggling away. Can we assume all went well?"
So after both Rebecca and Mouse were told the session went very well, Rebecca then looked around and said, "Oh my! Quite a mess!"
And because of Rebecca's comment, the three looked about at the remains of the session, and realized...they DID have quite a mess!
And so after seeing how tuckered out they all looked, Rebecca asked, "Want some help cleaning up?"
To which Mary exclaimed, "You Sweet Girl! YES we sure do!"
And then because he wanted to be included, Mouse offered, "I'll help too."
With a smile toward her, at times "nemesis" Mary replied, "That's splendid Mouse! Splendid. Yes the more the merrier, and it won't be long until supper."
And so as they tidied up, Vincent told Mary, Mouse and Rebecca of their plans to gather Catherine's things from her apartment after supper, and then said, "I plan on informing Pascal as well."
With concern Rebecca asked, "But what if that evil man is lurking about, waiting to harm Catherine! I mean will you two be safe?"
To which Vincent assured them they would be traveling with several sentries for protection.
Wanting to help protect Catherine too, Mouse responded, "Gotta go too Vincent. Help keep Catherine safe."
Thinking Mouse was so sweet, Catherine's heart broke a little bit because of his protectiveness. And after sharing a look with Vincent, Mary and Rebecca, she swiped a tear away.
Knowing he didn't want Mouse to be in any kind of danger, Vincent replied, "You must stay here in my place Mouse. With Father up top, some one of authority must be here. So you along with Pascal, must oversee things till I return."
With a nod, Mouse then stood a bit taller as he said, "O.K. fine Vincent."
And so with the Christmas Card Session successfully behind them, and with the completion of the evening meal, Catherine and Vincent prepared themselves for going above.
To be continued
Chapter Twenty
| Treasure of my Heart! By Sharon Holtz Chapter Nineteen __________________________ |
