The ground was still damp from the bountiful rains we received in the earlier part of the week, a perfect scenario for Jack Frost to make an appearance. Sure enough, as the sun began rising behind the hills to the east, a blanket of frost lay beneath the grapevines, standing like sentries in their perfectly straight rows. Most of their leaves have now fallen to the ground, as they enter dormancy until, we hope, late February.
We are still in the holiday spirit, with Christmas behind us and the new year knocking at our door. It is a time filled with memories of family and good times. It is especially a magical time of year for kids. Karen and I had the pleasure of attending both Kathleen and Clayton s Winterfest program at Olga Reed Elementary School in Los Alamos just before Christmas.
All eight grades of the school participated, with each class singing and dancing to songs ranging from traditional holiday favorites to new versions by Mariah Carey and Destiny s Child. All the kids did a great job as they played to a standing-room-only crowd in the school gymnasium. The show s director, known as Ms. Jessica to the kids, did an outstanding job putting the show together, along with all the teachers. I know our two kids really enjoyed learning from her.
We look forward to the next show. Everyone who goes to elementary school remembers being a part of some kind of Christmas show, as we used to call them. I can recall vividly, when both brother Dana and I were going to Ballard School, there was one year in particular that stands out from the rest. I was probably in the third grade, and there were two teachers at Ballard then, Miss Untinun, who taught fifth through eighth grade, and Miss Hamilton, who taught first through fourth grade.