Sasee Magazine - December 2021

December 2021

“Remember this December, that love weighs more than gold!”

– Josephine Dodge Daskam Bacon

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“It’s A Wrap” December 2021 Contents Volume 20, Issue 12

8 About the Cover Artist: The Budapest-based artist, Dorina Nemeskéri, has not stopped drawing from the moment she could hold a pencil in her hand. It was never a question that she would pursue her passion to become a full-time artist.

Her creations are inspired by an olden-time, vintage vibe. She wants her art to offer people a chance to escape their reality and feel cozy. Dorina explained, “I turned to fantasy to escape my environment of a city largely consisting only of what is usually often referred to as ‘commie blocks.’

Painting gave me an outlet to briefly move away from that grey reality!”

To set this atmosphere, she usually goes for oil-based and acrylic material. You may also notice that her characters have a unique taste in fashion. That is because her other love is vintage fashion/fashion design. As an introvert, art is definitely the best way for Dorina to truly express herself.

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4 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

What We Want for Christmas

by Erika Hoffman

12

Christmas in Our Hearts - But We Need Lights Around It

by Mary McClure

14

Karen Riordan: Making Magic in Myrtle Beach

by Sarah Elaine Hawkinson

16

The Season of Love, Joy, and Wisdom

by Rose Ann Sinay

22

Sasee Wish List

26

Perfectly Imperfect

by Margaret Lea

34

Songs of the Season

by Ellen Fannon

40

Evan’s Elf

by Melissa Face

42

December 2021 Events

44

Our Chinese Food Christmas

by Linda Baten Johnson

from the Editor Growing up, my parents and I mostly spent Christmas day traveling to spend time with my mom’s side of the family, which is pretty big. Instead of bringing gifts for every single family member, we collectively participate in a gift exchange.

The Santa’s Hat Gift Exchange has a few various names, but the rules pretty much remain the same.

Everyone included brings one wrapped gift of similar value that is usually either really great or really funny and the gift is placed under the tree anonymously. All participants pick a number from a Santa hat and take turns choosing a gift in their designated order. It’s important to note that you are not allowed to pick up or touch a gift unless it is the one you are opening. In other words, you cannot test how heavy the present is during your decision making.

The fun really begins when a player decides to “steal” an already opened gift from someone else instead of opening a new one. Each opened present is allowed two steals and the third person gets to go home with it. From experience, it seems that the best numbers to have are either the first or the last because those candidates have more gift options.

Regardless of the outcome, everyone involved goes home with a gift and gets a good giggle out of the game.

However, my family coined an iconic gift about a decade ago that (due to its lack of cuteness) reappears every year, the pink pig planter.

Family members have gotten a little more strategic with it now and do not wrap the pig itself because it’s too easy to spot. We would think, the bigger the gift, the more likely you are going home with the infamous pig. So now, most gifters take a picture of it and place it with another item that is actually a really good gift, to make up for the pig, of course.

Sasee wishes you all a wonderful holiday season surrounded by what’s most important - loved ones and treasured memories.

Cheers,

Publisher Delores Blount Sales & Marketing Director Susan Bryant Editor Sarah Elaine Hawkinson Account Executives Erica Schneider Gay Stackhouse Art Director Patrick Sullivan Contributing Photographer Chasing the Light Photography Web Developer Scott Konradt Accounting Gail Knowles Executive Publishers Jim Creel Bill Hennecy Suzette Rogers PO Box 1389, Murrells Inlet, SC 29576 fax 843-626-6452 • phone 843-626-8911 www.sasee.com • info@sasee.com Sasee is published monthly and distributed free along the Grand Strand. Submissions of articles and art are welcome. Visit our website for details on submission.

Sasee is a Strand Media Group, Inc. publication.

Copyright © 2021. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any material, in part or in whole, prepared by Strand Media Group, Inc. and appearing within this publication is strictly prohibited. Title “Sasee” is registered with the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

6 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

What We Want for Christmas

by Erika Hoffman

I attended a Christmas luncheon yesterday. A choir of older women sang traditional holiday carols flawlessly. Yet, the highlight for me was not the mesmerizing music and their jovial red vests and joyful smiles but instead the performance of a little old lady who is the troupe’s comedienne.

and practical. A literal answer. A comical twist. And the glaring truth of the joke which most of us accept - we gain weight as we age.

She stepped forward in front of her compatriots and with a little twinkle in her eyes began her story. Neither Jimmy Kimmel nor Jimmy Fallon can deliver a joke with better timing, tone, affect, and enunciation than she did, and she performed it live too in the midst of 100 folks. That’s no laughing matter because most of us amateur jokesters wouldn’t have had the nerve!

So many women in their fifties and sixties complain about husbands’ habits as though they’ve just discovered these things about their partners, despite four decades of marriage. I always elicit a stare from my pals when I declare: “It’s too bad my husband was so dang good looking when he was a young man.” Ears perk up. Brows raise. Smiles form.

“If he hadn’t been so handsome, I’d have noticed how odd he was.” Then everyone guffaws.

She segued into her joke from a song the group had warbled about making a list to let Santa know what your heart desires for Christmas. She said she knew a woman who hinted about her wishes days on end before the holiday. This woman told her husband repeatedly what she expected to see in her driveway on Christmas morning. Like most husbands, her spouse didn’t appear to listen. She became more explicit in telling him what she wanted. The gift wasn’t to be delivered under the tree but in front of the garage. “I want something that goes from zero to 150 in three seconds” this woman had trilled to her non-responsive hubby.

“Zero to 150” she repeated each day leading up to December 25. “No need to wrap it.”

That Christmas morning- we were told- this woman rushed out to her driveway and looked to her right and then to her left, turning in a complete circle. As our raconteur told this part of the tale, she exaggerated the head turns, and then our performer looked straight ahead at us with a bewildered gaze. Our jokester twirled around. Imitating the woman in her story, she searched for her zero to 150 surprise! And then she looked down at her feet.

She said, “There set a digital scale.”

We all howled.

Mature women like jokes that resonate. Women of a certain age understand the scenario of a nagging wife, an unresponsive partner, her desire for something extravagant and sporty and his answer to her wish - something frugal 8 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

We related to her joke.

People laugh because we’re all alike. We marry when we’re young and pretty and then as the years go on and our faces sag along with our bellies, we start noticing traits of our partners we didn’t see in the heady days of youth. Suddenly, it seems the smitten groom you married is morphing into your grumpy father-in-law or you are accused of turning into your husband’s critical mother-in-law. We start noticing DNA we hadn’t considered when blinded by attractive looks and springtime. C’est la vie. With age, we notice chinks in our armor, but we also laugh about those chinks and do not take the world or each other too seriously. We appreciate truths we’ve discovered along the way.

So, with many Christmases behind us, we enjoy listening to songs more than opening presents. We appreciate a good joke more than a good cup of wassail. And the camaraderie of friends and acquaintances over a pleasant meal in a pleasant setting entertained by pleasant folks who “get us” is a merry way to celebrate the season, to celebrate life.

Erika Hoffman resides in Chapel Hill, North Carolina with her one and only husband for many, many years.

Her kids are grown and gone.

But they left their pets behind. So now her doggies are her kids and writing is “her thing.”

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Christmas in Our Hearts But We Need Lights Around It

by Mary McClure

It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas,” I say hopefully each December when the temperature drops down in the 30s. I say, “feels like Christmas,” not “looks like Christmas,” because we Okies know that a white Christmas is as rare as a partridge in our pear tree. It does happen, once in a while, but I am not one of those looking at the sky and dreaming of a White Christmas because snow can really foul up travel plans for everyone but Santa Claus. What I’m hoping for, starting with the first weekend in December, is the perfect day to put up the outside Christmas decorations. A perfect day I define as somewhere between 33 and 99 degrees, not raining, although a little mist would be OK, and wind gusts no more than 25 miles per hour. I would make a list each year. Read it to my husband: “Go to the storage place, get 15 boxes of decorations. Cut enough cedar boughs for the lamp post and front door. Decorate lamp pole. Decorate front door. Put lights in tree.”

“What was that last thing?” he always asked suspiciously.

“Put lights in tree,” I’d say cheerily. “We’ll just work it in on a pretty day.” He would look noncommittal. He knew I was using the editorial “we” and it was he who would have to lug the ladders around the front and climb up and down them to string lights in the elm tree.

occurred to me that they could take over this essential part of the Christmas festivities. As it turned out, they didn’t find it very festive either. I insisted for several years until, finally, one son, high atop a ladder, said bitterly, “Mom, you just ruin Thanksgiving making us put these lights up in the tree.”

That got my attention. What kind of a Ma Scrooge, what kind of a Grinchette had I turned into? So, I hired it done by people who put ads in the paper saying if there was anything they loved to do, it was climb up in brittle old trees and wind strings of little light bulbs around even more brittle branches. Or, more precisely, “We do what others won’t.”

That elm tree is more than 50 years old now, which is not that old for a tree, but high winds and bad ice storms, have taken their toll. This year, there aren’t enough reachable branches to wrap lights around. I finally had to concede that what we’re reminded of every year - that the true spirit of Christmas lies not in decorations, in gifts, in celebrations, but in our hearts – that’s what is important. I just wish I could find a way to string some lights around it.

“I’ll help,” I’d add quickly. “I’ll go get stuff and hand it up to you.”

Eventually, I’d encourage him - well, OK, nag him into climbing up into the elm tree to string lights. The Christmas spirit curve took a nosedive around our house during this stage. It was a task he hated, as he continually reminded me in left-over Marine Corps terminology. But I always got a great rush of Christmas joy when I’d drive up to the house and see our elm tree aglow with twinkling-colored lights. Since our three sons were always here for Thanksgiving, it finally 12 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

Mary McClure, editor of the Fort Sill Cannoneer for 18 years when it was rated among the Army’s top three newspapers, was also the first woman inducted into the Army’s Public Affairs Hall of Fame. She has received the Lawton Citizen of the Humanities Award and the Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters Outstanding Achievement award for Special Programming among metro radio stations.

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Karen Riordan: Making Magic in Myrtle Beach

by Sarah Elaine Hawkinson

With a passionate background in tourism marketing and sales, Karen Riordan made her way to the Grand Strand in 2018 to become the new President and CEO of the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce (MBACC) and the Convention & Visitors Bureau (CVB). “What I appreciate the most is the incredible team I work with every day, and the fantastic business community we have here!” Karen continued, “I enjoy the legislative advocacy aspect of my role and I absolutely love getting the opportunity to serve all of the amazing small businesses.”

Our local, small businesses deserve to be supported all year, but especially during the holiday season. Karen prefers to shop at local stores and goes crazy for creative arts and crafts. She explained, “Art, candles, and the many other handmade type gifts are my favorite to buy. They are all made with love and feel extra special and personal to give as gifts to my loved ones because they are all such unique presents.” She likes to wrap as soon as she selects a gift and enjoys making them personalized with gift bags and pretty tissue paper, tags, etc.

Karen and her husband get excited every year to decorate their Christmas tree with their collection of special ornaments that they have received from their parents, friends, and family members through the years. One year, their kitten climbed the tree and knocked it down, causing quite a few ornaments to fall. Luckily, not too many were broken, because pulling each ornament out and placing it on the tree is like a lovely walk down memory lane for them as a couple.

Christmas is Karen’s favorite time of year and she cherishes her quality time spent with her family who all travel to Myrtle Beach to be together. They celebrate with lots of great food, especially cookies, pies, cocoa, and many other chocolate desserts. Karen’s family always attends Christmas Mass on Christmas Eve and they have a tradition of opening one gift that night as well. Growing up in the north surrounded by snow this time of year, Karen’s family also had the tradition of going ice skating. “This year, we will just have to go ice skating at the Winter Wonderland festival right here in the heart of Myrtle Beach,” she exclaimed with enthusiasm.

14 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

Winter Wonderland at the Beach is an exciting new festival that features a magical, walk-through light experience plus a real ice-skating rink...just like Rockefeller center. This is the first time in many years that a real, outdoor ice surface has been brought to the Myrtle Beach area and it will be located at Burroughs & Chapin Pavilion Place. The light show will take you on a walking path through the park where you will be able to tour Toyland, Peppermint Valley, and several other interactive and picture-perfect light displays. This family-friendly holiday attraction was created by the MBACC and the CVB along with the City of Myrtle Beach and produced by the City of Myrtle Beach Parks, Recreation, and Sports Tourism Department. During the whole month of December, every day (except Christmas Day) until January 2nd, the downtown and boardwalk areas will be transformed into a sparkling holiday dreamland. Filled with twinkling lights and family fun, the Winter Wonderland at the Beach festivities are a must this holiday season.

Visit the website and the Facebook page to keep up with the latest magical events: www.WinterWonderlandatTheBeach.com • www.facebook.com/events/404655734369960

Sasee.com :: December 2021 :: 15

The Season of Love, Joy, and Wisdom

by Rose Ann Sinay

It was the year of the Cabbage Patch Kids, and I was making my bi-weekly visit to the Zayre’s toy department to peruse the aisles, hoping for a surprise shipment of the hottest doll of the year. The toy was all my three-year-old daughter could talk about. Some of her little friends carried their babies with them everywhere they went, and Kailey wanted one of her own to love.

Battered and bruised, I thought an ice cream sundae and a cup of coffee would be the perfect way to celebrate my coup and lick my wounds. I made my purchase and headed directly to Friendly’s next door. With my package in tow, I found a booth, ordered my treat, and proceeded to take the box from the bag. The doll had red hair in two thick pigtails and freckles across her nose. She was perfect.

Although I wanted more than anything to make it happen, these special “kids” were nowhere to be found. There were sightings of the doll and frantic buying, only for the toy to disappear, again, leaving some moms triumphant and many others dismayed that their child may not have the most important toy on their list. Although I was doing my due diligence to find the doll, I couldn’t relate to the craziness reported on the news about parents stepping over one another to snatch this plaything. What was the world coming to?

I couldn’t wait to see the looks on my kid’s faces on Christmas morning. I took a long draw on my coffee followed by a spoonful of fudge. Life was good.

Suddenly, the stock room doors flew open. A large cart appeared piled high with boxes–Cabbage Patch Kids.

Women scrambled like crabs holding two or three boxes in their pincers and under their arms. A high-pitched buzz and a horde of bodies descended upon the toy section. My anxiety spiked as I tried to find some space. As the boxes were being attacked, I watched a carton being pushed across a shelf and wedged between the lower shelf and the wall. I lunged for the package, landing hard on the tiled floor. No pain, no gain, I muttered to myself moving forward. I huddled the object like a large football and retreated from the growing mob. I didn’t care which Cabbage Patch Kid I had–blue-eyed, green-eyed, red hair, blonde hair, no hair. It didn’t matter; I had scored!

My knees were wobbly as I made my way to the register, and I thought I might have bruised a rib. The previous week, I had snagged a He-Man figure (Masters of the Universe) and a few of his freakishly muscled cohorts for my son, but there had been no frenzy, just a calm, successful shopping trip.

The toys were already wrapped and hidden in a plastic bin in my closet. Although I was pleased and relieved to have them, there hadn’t been that desperation that I had just experienced.

16 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

“Mommy,” a young voice screeched, “a Cabbage Patch doll!”

“Excuse me,” her mother said, “Where did you find the doll?

Were there any left?” She looked as desperate as I had felt before my death-defying lunge.

“Next door,” I said. “The boxes were disappearing as quickly as the stock boys put them out, but, if you’re quick, you might get one.”

Before I knew it, the woman and her child were out the door rushing across the parking lot.

The chocolate in my mouth was suddenly too thick and sickeningly sweet. Had I really charged like a linebacker to get this red-headed piece of plastic and cloth? Embarrassment set in. I had gotten caught up in a material mania and my priorities had been scrambled. This was not the reason for the season.

I went home, wrapped the package, and put it in the bin along with He-Man. There was no longer any pleasure in the fact that I had gotten the doll. *** Christmas morning, my son and daughter were up early. We heard them scramble down the stairs and squeal with glee at the sight of the presents lined up under the tree. My husband and I grabbed a glass of eggnog and snuggled on the couch, watching our children open each gift. Their delight was contagious, and we laughed at their excitement.

My son opened his assortment of Masters of the Universe figures and jumped up and down. His wish had been granted.

My daughter opened the box containing her doll and she began to cry and laugh at the same time. “Santa brought me a Cabbage Patch baby,” she managed to say hugging her ginger-haired doll to her chest. An hour later, she laid the doll in a cradle, also delivered by Santa. From time to time, she picked the baby up, burped her, and ran her small hand over the doll’s pigtails. She was enchanted.

I was still embarrassed by my actions in aisle nine of the department store but watching my daughter’s happiness let me forgive myself a little.

I fished the “adoption” certificate with the doll’s name out of the box. I laughed out loud. Her name was Joy; of course, it was.

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Let Us Wrap You in Peace and Love

My self-recrimination slipped away. I had learned my lesson well. This bit of wisdom was my gift in this wonderful season of love…and joy.

Call to Schedule Rose Ann Sinay Assisted Living & Memory Care your tour Today Assisted Living & Memory Care is a freelance writer newly relocated of MURRELLS INLET of MURRELLS INLET to Connecticut. She continues to write 843-353-1525 about moments worth remembering, graciously provided by family and www.stgabrielmurrellsinlet.com Assisted Living & Memory Care friends. of MURRELLS INLET 699 Prince

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Sasee.com :: December 2021 :: 17

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Sasee.com :: December 2021 :: 19

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Wish List

Sasee is incredibly thankful for all of you, our devoted readers, and we hope all of you understand just how important our advertisers are to our magazine. Our advertisers are all local and offer unique gifts for you and your loved ones so please join us in supporting them this holiday season. Sasee encourages you all to give thanks as well as give gifts from our Wish List.

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This Palmetto necklace is sure to be the best gift under the tree. This beautiful piece of jewelry was designed by Dawn at Grady’s Jewelers.

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Large 13” Plush Warmies are fully microwavable to provide hours of soothing warmth and comfort. Warmies are scented with real dried French lavender and perfectly weighted for a positive sensory experience. Choose from sloths, turtles, sharks, flamingos, red pandas, and more. Warmies make an ideal gift for all ages.

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Perfectly Imperfect

by Margaret Lea

Standing back to admire and enjoy the lovely decorations I’d put up in our home for Christmas 2020, I noticed that the table runner on the long table in our family room was extremely uneven. One side dangled nearly to the floor, while the other side barely hung over the table.

On top of this wayward table runner was an elaborate display consisting of pinecones, cute ornaments, a small glass Christmas tree, and a dancing Santa who boogied to “Jingle Bell Rock” when his start button was pushed. (My three girls pushed this often.) Two long strings of shiny beads, placed precariously around the outer edges of the table runner, completed the festivities.

It had been a lot of creative fun placing everything just so on the table, but I did not want to remove it all, adjust the runner and do it again. So, the funkily-placed runner just lay there mocking me, “Hey, Little Miss Perfectionist, congratulations on the FANTASTIC job you did of placing me on my table! A little too jolly with the wine while decorating?”

As I’d had no wine at all while decorating, I knew this was a ludicrous taunt. However, the intent behind the query still stung. How could I have allowed this quite rude table runner to be placed so negligently in my very own home? Mr. Table Runner was quite correct in his keen assessment of me as a perfectionist - well, as long as you don’t count how tidy and clean the house is… or isn’t.

With three teenagers, I long ago waved the white flag for that battle. Technically, I waved the grey flag; I can’t keep anything snowy white anymore. So, while my kids have steadily chipped away at my perfectionism for years, COVID-19 dealt it the final blow. Our family vacation in 2020 was to the delightful island nation of Hobby Lobby, with special add-on shore excursions to Walmart and Dollar Tree. To be fair, we did spend a good bit of time at the lake... the tiny, man-made one in our subdivision, which we walked around frequently for exercise and to keep some sanity.

My husband lost his job due to the pandemic, thus freeing him up for a couple of months of luxury home-spa relaxing.

Well, I guess it could have been relaxing if not for the constant networking, job searching, and extremely expensive COBRA health insurance payments. (Thankfully, he did find a new job that he enjoys even more than his previous one.)

26 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

Our kitchen nook was turned into a ceramics workshop thanks to virtual school. Our daughter’s teacher informed her that working with ceramics is not advised in small closed spaces like bedrooms, due to the possibility of breathing invisible toxic particles of silica dust. Apparently, it’s much better to share that noxious dust with the entire family.

Two of our three girls succumbed to Netflix and Hulu’s siren songs, with a corresponding drop in GPA. One girl blamed us, the parents, and claimed that her grades would dramatically improve when we let her return to in-person school. (She did return to campus for the last three months of the school year. Alas, the wondrous improvement in her grades never materialized.)

Like everyone in the pandemic, we were forced to spend an inordinate amount of time at home with only immediate family, to stop going most places we love, and to basically just survive in a weird limbo, learning to negotiate cramped quarters and trampled-on emotions. It made me realize that perfection is grossly overrated.

I even learned to appreciate the freakishly weird aspects of my fellow family members, as they did with me. Peaceful coexistence, progress, kindness, and good health have replaced my former goal of perfection. I know now without a shadow of a doubt that nothing will ever be perfect, and that’s OK. If things are running even moderately smoothly, that’s a major win.

So, take that my dear Mr. Table Runner! I’m not listening to any more of your jeers. You were just fine the way you were in 2020. Perhaps I’ll even place you in exactly the same goofy, lopsided position again this Christmas. Then again…Nah!

Margaret Lea is a wife, piano teacher, writer, and mother of three beautiful teenage girls. She has been published in “Chicken Soup for the Soul.”

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Presents with Personality

by Sarah Elaine Hawkinson

For some gift-givers, the actual wrapping of the present is one of the most important and fun elements when giving a gift. Whether the aesthetic matches you or the one receiving the gift, try wrapping your presents with some personality. Here are a few gift-wrapping styles that are trending this holiday season:

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Songs of the Season

by Ellen Fannon

I love all kinds of Christmas music–carols, secular songs, children’s songs–provided it is not played before Thanksgiving. That being said, there are a number of songs associated with Christmas time that really don’t seem to have anything to do with Christmas.

Take the old standard, “Jingle Bells.” There is no mention of Christmas in the lyrics. According to Wikipedia, it was written by James Lord Pierpont, J.P. Morgan’s uncle, in 1850, and was inspired by one-horse open sleigh races between Medford Square and Malden Square in Medford, Massachusetts. It was originally intended for the Thanksgiving season and was often sung as a drinking song at parties. Personally, I’ve never been in a one-horse open sleigh, so I don’t know if it is fun or not, yet I sing with gusto as if I know it is.

There are several other “winter-themed” songs heard only during the Christmas season, such as “Winter Wonderland,” “Frosty the Snowman,” “Baby It’s Cold Outside,” “Sleigh Ride,” and “Let it Snow.” Living in the south and having lived for two years on the equator, it is hard to appreciate the requisite for snow in order to have a real Christmas, but it must be true as all the Christmas movies feature snow.

I sometimes wonder how other people who live where Christmas falls during hot weather feel about this stereotype.

As for me, I am quite happy not having a white Christmas, which is one of the reasons I escaped Ohio. In fact, the song, “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas” conjures up visions in my mind of shoveling snow, having my car stuck in the snow, and breaking my neck on ice. More like a nightmare than a dream. Snow is only beautiful when one is inside a warm house with a roaring fire, sipping a mug of hot chocolate with marshmallows, and gazing out the window at the pristine newly fallen snow before it turns into black slush.

One of the traditional Christmas songs which never fails to amuse me is “Little Drummer Boy.” Now don’t get me wrong, I like the tune and the lyrics are sweet. But I have to consider it from the perspective of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The poor woman had to travel approximately seventy miles from Nazareth to Bethlehem for the joyful purpose of paying taxes (talk about rubbing salt in the wound), in the condition of being “great with child.” This couldn’t have 34 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

been easy. The Bible doesn’t tell us whether she walked or perhaps rode a donkey or had other modes of transportation.

Nevertheless, any journey in her late stage of pregnancy would have been uncomfortable. Then when she arrives in Bethlehem, there is no place to stay, so she ends up having to give birth in a stable (which was probably a cave rather than what we think of as a wooden structure). Although the Bible doesn’t explicitly say, it is assumed there either were animals present, or the area had been used for animals, as baby Jesus was laid in a manger, which is a feeding trough for animals. So, in addition to the ordeal of having just given birth, the lack of cleanliness and the barnyard odors most likely added to her discomfort.

Then what happens? A snot-nosed little brat shows up and bangs on a drum! He probably woke the baby after she’d just gotten him to sleep! Somehow, I find it difficult to envision any woman who had just gone through what Mary did nodding her head when the drummer boy asked if he could play his drum for baby Jesus, rather than asking Joseph to please get rid of the kid and especially his drum. Who wants to hear a drum solo when one is stressed, exhausted, and (oh yes) just given birth in a stable? But as the little drummer boy is not scriptural, I suppose I shouldn’t attach too much significance to the scenario.

Enjoy all the wonderful music of the season, don’t worry about analyzing it too deeply, and “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.”

Ellen Fannon is an award winning author, a practicing veterinarian, former missionary, and church pianist/ organist. She originated and wrote the Pet Peeves column for the Northwest Florida Daily News. She and her husband have also been foster parents to more than 40 children, and the adoptive parents of two sons. Her first novel, Other People’s Children, the humorous account of the life of a foster parent, was released November 2017 and is available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and the trunk of her car. She lives in Valparaiso, Florida, with her husband, son, and assorted pets.

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Delores

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Evan’s Elf

by Melissa Face

“I’m never allowing an elf on my shelf - or anywhere else in my house for that matter,” I proclaimed at my firstborn’s baby shower. I was a new mom and full of ideals, philosophies, and many other “I’ll never” statements. I hadn’t read the popular book, and I really didn’t want to read it. I didn’t like the idea of having something else to monitor during a season that is already so hectic.

were enjoying rummaging through a holiday toy bin.

They resurfaced with several small, plushy creatures including a fox, a reindeer, and an elf. I didn’t think much about it at the time. My arms were full of gift wrap; I was distracted, and I had no rebuttal for my kids’ best argument: “Everything is seventy-five percent off!”

For about eight years, things went as I planned. We enjoyed Christmas with our son, Evan, and eventually with our daughter, Delaney. We wrote letters to Santa, visited him at the mall, and enjoyed Santa-themed pancake breakfasts. None of us mentioned the elf, and we still didn’t have one in the house. I laughed at images my friends posted on social media of their elves getting into mischief and making whipped cream and sprinkle messes on kitchen countertops. It still wasn’t enough to make me want one.

On the way home, they chatted incessantly about their new friends and how excited they were to finally have an elf. I cut my eyes at Evan in the rearview mirror. He saw me and quickly said, “Don’t worry, Mom. I’ve got this.”

Kids have a way of learning about things, though. Elf stories circulated around my kids’ elementary school and at dance class.

“Why don’t we have an elf?” my children asked.

“We don’t need one,” I said. “We know that Santa is watching your behavior.”

“Well, my friends have an elf,” Evan said. “He does fun things around the house and leaves notes for them.”

“Yeah! And he moves to a different spot every day!”

Delaney echoed.

I didn’t budge, and we enjoyed another “elfless” Christmas season.

Two years ago, we went shopping a couple of days after Christmas. I wanted to buy some discounted wrapping paper, bows, and decorations. My children 40 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

They got me.

For almost a year, the elf and his cohorts hid out in Evan’s room. When the following Christmas season came around, Evan stayed up a little later than his sister each night to help the elves find a new spot around the house. He helped them hide behind canned food in the pantry, set up a carnival on the living room floor, and write notes about being good and eating vegetables.

Delaney was in love with the elf. She couldn’t wait to get up each morning to find out where he was and what kind of message he had left for her. In fact, she got up so early some mornings that I had to tell her to go back to bed - even the elves were still asleep.

One morning I was exceptionally grumpy when Delaney came into my room at five a.m. and stood by my bed, waiting for me to notice her arrival.

“Mom, can I go check on my elf?”

“No!” I shouted. “Go back to bed. And if you wake me up again, the elf is leaving for good!”

Delaney returned to her room without much complaining, but a few minutes later I heard Evan quietly crying in his room. I got up to check on him and asked him what was wrong.

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“I’m just sad about the elf,” he said.

“I’m really having fun surprising Delaney each day. I don’t want him to go away.”

I told him I understood, and I promised not to ban the elf. While I didn’t exactly appreciate being woken up at five in the morning, it was a small price to pay for the joy that my children were experiencing.

Delaney loved the excitement of finding her elf each morning, and Evan loved creating that magic for his sister.

I still haven’t read the popular book, but I have accepted the elf as part of our Christmas tradition. I’ve also allowed a few other items into our home that I said I never would, years ago, before I was a mom, and before I really understood the wonder of creating magic for little ones.

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Melissa Face is the author of I Love You More Than Coffee, an essay collection for parents who love coffee a lot and their kids...a little more. Her essays and articles have appeared in Richmond Family Magazine, ScaryMommy, and twentyone volumes of Chicken Soup for the Soul. Read more at melissaface.com.

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December 2021 Events Light Shows Winter Wonderland at the Beach Burroughs & Chapin Pavilion Place Myrtle Beach Dec 1 - Jan 2, 2022 (closed Christmas Day) Check website for hours www.winterwonderlandatthebeach.com

Nights of a Thousand Candles Brookgreen Gardens Murrells Inlet Dec 2 - Jan 2, 2022 • 4:00-9:00pm Check website for specific dates www.brookgreen.org

The Great Christmas Light Show N. Myrtle Beach Parks & Sports Complex Dec 1 - 31 (closed Christmas Day) 5:30-9:30 PM www.nmb.us

Holiday Entertainment Charlestones Christmas Show Winyah Auditorium Georgetown Dec 3, 2021 • 7pm www.winyahauditorium.org

Carolina Opry’s The Christmas Show of the South Myrtle Beach Dec 1 - Jan 5, 2022 Check website for show times www.thecarolinaopry.com

The South’s Grandest Christmas Show Alabama Theatre North Myrtle Beach Dec 1 - Jan 1, 2022 Check website for show times www.alabama-theatre.com

A Magical Christmas and Comedy Show GTS Theatre, Myrtle Beach Dec 3 - 28 • 7pm Check website for show times www.gtstheatre.com

Christmas at Pirates Voyage Myrtle Beach Dec 1 - Jan 1, 2022 Check website for show times www.piratesvoyage.com/myrtle-beach

Original Motown Christmas Tribute Show GTS Theatre, Myrtle Beach Dec 1 - 29 Check website for show times www.gtstheatre.com

Christmas with Elvis Starring Alex Mitchell GTS Theatre, Myrtle Beach Dec 7, 14, 28 • 2pm www.gtstheatre.com Step into Christmas with Elton John Tribute Show GTS Theatre, Myrtle Beach Dec 2, 9, 16, 23, 26 • 7pm www.gtstheatre.com Joy To The World: A Celebration of Christmas Theatre of the Republic, Conway December 9 - 12 & 16 - 19 Check website for show times www.theatreoftherepublic.com

Christmas Parades Georgetown Candyland Christmas Parade Front Street Dec 4 • 11am www.historicgeorgetownsc.com North Myrtle Beach Christmas Parade Main Street (from Bilo to Ocean Blvd.)

Dec 4 • 5:30pm www.nmbpark.com Murrells Inlet Christmas Parade Highway 17 Business (from Wilcox Avenue to Wachesaw Road) Dec 5 • 3pm www.murrellsinletsc.com/events Surfside Beach Christmas Parade Ocean Boulevard/Surfside Drive Dec 11 • 2:00pm www.visitmyrtlebeach.com

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Our Chinese Food Christmas

by Linda Baten Johnson

In 2021, the polar vortex left millions of Texans with no electricity or water available. My niece’s family, warned about the stoppage of water, filled bathtubs and containers with the precious liquid. Other friends with no electricity left their homes to go to warming shelters or to live with those who were experiencing only temporary electrical shutdowns.

“We’re expecting you, but the weather is going to be unusually cold. Bring your jumpers and plenty of 20p and 50p coins.”

We connected with our three daughters during that challenging week through a joint text fest. My husband and I experienced rolling blackouts but had water. We camped out in our smallest room, the office, a sanctuary in the middle of the house with only one window. We ran a small electric heater when the power was on and hung blankets in front of the lone window. We even wore our long underwear, coats, and hats while working puzzles and reading during the daylight hours.

Advertising pictures can be deceiving.

In one text, our youngest daughter said, “When it’s this cold, I get a taste for Chinese food.” Her comment drew immediate responses of LOL, happy faces, and Yum-Yum. We all regard our Chinese-food Christmas as one of our best holidays.

The year before our girls left home, we planned a family vacation to Europe. We dreamed of a delightful Christmas as we boarded the airplane to take us from sunny Texas to the “blessed plot” of England, the place we’d seen in films, on television, and imagined when reading books.

My husband mastered driving on the left side of the road and roundabouts. Our youngest daughter organized our underground excursions, and our older daughters organized our must-see stops. Emerging from the tube station and seeing Big Ben brought gasps from all of us. We walked cobblestone paths with a nippy chill in the air and marveled at the shop decorations celebrating the season. As in America, people rushed through the English streets, many armed with packages, and most wearing smiles as the bells and recorded carols competed with the busy traffic sounds.

For our English Christmas, we’d booked a charming bed and breakfast in Bath, which promised a separate apartment for our family. With Jane Austen’s memorable characters in our heads, we rang our host for final directions and confirmation.

44 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

After she terminated the call, we surmised that a jumper was a sweater, but we were puzzled about the need for coins.

When we arrived, our daughters dubbed the abode as the Munsters’ Homestead as the exterior reminded them of the black-and-white television show. Optimistic that the inside would be better, we knocked on the door. We saw no spiders weaving webs, bats flying through the rooms, or a dragon peering out.

We issued a collective sigh of relief until our hostess led us to our private apartment–a cramped and unheated space unless you put 20 pence or 50 pence in the heating meter.

Our abode did have four beds as promised but distinctly lacked charm and ambiance. We unpacked and went to the local market for breakfast and lunch supplies as we planned to celebrate Christmas in an elegant restaurant.

The predicted unusual cold arrived, and we abbreviated our scheduled Christmas Eve exploration of Bath. We hurried back to the apartment, snuggled up under blankets we pulled from all the beds, and sat on the sofa wearing hats and gloves. The heating meter had a voracious appetite, and our stack of pence coins dwindled. We decided to feed the machine only when absolutely necessary. It became a game as to who would be the first to request heat. Despite the cold, we were warm and happy, all bundled up and spending Christmas Eve together.

Christmas Day dawned, and we dressed warmly as we searched for a nearby restaurant with notions of a blazing fireplace, gleaming china on white tablecloths, and perhaps some figgy pudding.

Nothing. We agreed to postpone our special English dinner until the next day and compromised on Chinese food for Christmas. Stomping our feet to keep warm, we begged for as many 20 and 50 pence coins as the proprietor of the takeout shop could spare and gratefully ordered our favorite

dishes and extra egg rolls. Of course, we received fortune cookies.

Our fortunes didn’t tell us that restaurants would not be open the next day either. England celebrates Boxing Day on the day after Christmas, a holiday designated for the workers to spend with their families. So, we ate leftover Chinese food on Boxing Day. Fortunately, we didn’t worry about spoilage as our tiny apartment was colder than the inside of any refrigerator.

The morning of the 27th, we boarded a plane back to the United States. When family and friends trot out stories of Christmas memories at holiday times, I often notice smiles or winks between our daughters. We all remember our perfect English Christmas when we learned that shared times with family members create a warmth greater than any 20 or 50 pence coin can purchase.

So, when our daughter texted that the polar vortex conditions made her want Chinese food, she reminded us all that bad times pass, but the joy and love of family and friendship are forever.

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South Myrtle Beach 843-626-7272

INDEPENDENTLY OWNED & OPERATED

North Myrtle Beach 843-280-3222 Garden City 843-357-6400 Socastee 843-293-7272 Conway 843-347-7272

papajohns.com HANDEL’S

Messiah FREE

ADMISSION

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2021 | 2:30 PM In lieu of tickets, nonperishable food items or monetary donations for Sea Haven are appreciated and will be collected at the door.

“Provide a Safe Place for Youth in Crisis” with respect and dignity.

Ring in the New Year with Long Bay Symphony

Strauss on the Strand FRIDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2021 | 2:30 PM

TICKETS

$25

Both holiday concerts will take place at First Presbyterian Church

843.448.8379

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL OR VISIT US ONLINE AT www.LongBaySymphony.com

46 :: Sasee.com :: December 2021

AIM | Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine............................ 47 Angel Oak Nursing & Rehab Center.................................. 30 Angelo’s Steak & Pasta......................... 43 B. Graham Interiors Collection........... 46 Bethea Retirement Community........... 41 Bleu..................................................... 20 BloominGail’s...................................... 45 Brightwater ........................................... 7 Brookgreen Gardens ............................. 5 Carolina Car Care............................... 19 Cheryl Newby Gallery......................... 27 Class, LLC........................................... 39 The Clean Up Club............................. 38 Coastal Luxe Interiors.......................... 41 Darden Jewelers................................... 39 Design on a Dime............................... 39 Doodlebugs......................................... 19 Dr. Grabeman..................................... 39 Dr. Jen Orthodontics........................... 38 Dr. Sattele’s Rapid Weight Loss & Esthetics Centers............................. 11 Eleanor Pitts Gifts & Jewelry............... 33 Flooring Plus....................................... 19 Frame Factory...................................... 37 Gay Dolphin....................................... 45 Good Deed Goods.............................. 43 Grady’s Jewelers................................... 31 The Hammock Shops Village............... 10 Hot Fish Club .................................... 21 Inspire Coastal Grand.......................... 18 The Kaminski House........................... 37 Laid Back Charters.............................. 32 The Lakes at Litchfield ........................ 48 LampLighter........................................ 18 Long Bay Symphony........................... 46 Moore, Johnson & Saraniti.................. 35 Papa John’s Pizza ................................. 46 Pawleys Island Bakery.......................... 30 Prodigy Kitchens & Baths.................... 32 PruittHealth........................................ 13 Renewal by Andersen ............................ 2 Rescued Treasures................................ 21 Rose Arbor Fabrics............................... 37 Rover Boat Tours................................. 20 Salt Water Storks & More.................... 31 Sara & Beth Gifts & Home................. 27 Shades & Draperies............................. 17 Speech Solutions ................................. 33 St. Gabriel Assisted Living & Memory Care.................................. 17 Surf Unlimited Mercantile..................... 9 Tidelands Community Hospice........... 21 Winter Wonderland at the Beach........... 3 Wilson Senior Care.............................. 35

I CAN WALK BAREFOOT ON THE BEACH AGAIN! Local acupuncture clinic is treating the untreatable, peripheral neuropathy with incredible results!

Pain comes in many shapes and sizes.

One of the most debilitating being the burning and tingling that comes with peripheral neuropathy. A disease that comes with years of shooting, stabbing pain that gradually ends in numbness, balance problems and on occasion, amputations. A disease that was once classified as irreparable.

David R. of Murrells Inlet was facing such a fate.

“I stopped golfing. I wasn’t taking walks on the beach with my wife.

I was living on gabapentin and antidepressants and everywhere I went; my doctor, the specialists, the pain institute, told me there was no cure. How are you supposed to live your life knowing that everyday brings pain and suffering?”

Peripheral neuropathy is a result of damage to the nerves, commonly caused by a lack of blood flow to the nerves in the hands and feet. This causes the nerves to begin to degenerate due to lack of nutrient flow. Most peripheral neuropathy sufferers experience a heightened sensitivity to touch making it almost impossible for those diagnosed to even wear shoes, much less enjoy life.

"It was like walking on sharp river rocks. I barely left my recliner.”

shares David, whose experience is not uncommon for those diagnosed with peripheral neuropathy.

atypical for the staff at AIM. "We have a 90% success rate in treating neuropathy," shares Dr. Weber.

That is until he found Dr. Tonya Weber of AIM|Acupuncture & Integrative Medicine of North Myrtle Beach. Dr. Weber and her staff have pioneered a cutting edge, medical solution to treat neuropathy, eliminate or greatly reduce its symptoms and give people their lives back. And they’re doing it without the use of prescription medications and invasive surgeries.

The number of treatments needed to allow the nerves to fully recover will vary from person to person and can only be determined after a detailed neurological and vascular evaluation.

So long as you have not sustained more than 85% nerve damage AIM offers hope where there once was none.

“Acupuncture is incredible at restoring blood flow and stimulating damaged nerves preventing them from dying off,” tells Dr. Weber. “We take our treatments a step further by integrating ATP Resonance BioTherapy™ which targets specific nerves in the body using microcurrent. ATP therapy is like watering a plant. This treatment will stimulate the blood vessels to grow back around the peripheral nerves and provide them with the proper nutrients to heal and repair.”

Three months later David is thrilled with his progress, “I can walk barefoot on the beach again!”

Success stories like David's are not

While David’s peripheral neuropathy was idiopathic meaning the cause is unknown, Dr. Weber’s treatments can also help people whose neuropathy is caused by diabetes or chemotherapy.

“We have seen tremendous success in treating neuropathy of all types through very personalized treatments, specifically tailored to treat each individual case.”

To schedule a consultation and complete evaluation call (843)2734467 but do so quickly because AIM is taking a limited number of new neuropathy patients. For more information and to take advantage of their new patient offer visit AIMLiveLife.com.

Visit www.AIMLiveLife.com to learn more and to take advantage of their NEW PATIENT OFFER!

As a fresh holiday season settles over Pawleys Island, revelry and song fill the halls and fends off the chill as The Lakes at Litchfield collective gather and visit with family and friends, all in the safety of their perfectly wonderful community.

Call Us Today • (843) 353-6040

Independent Living • Assisted Living • Memory Care • Skilled Nursing • Rehab 120 Lakes at Litchfield Dr. • Pawleys Island, SC 29585 • Lakes-Litchfield.com • (843) 353-6040