Wednesday, November 29, 2017 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
21
THE MILL PARTY: Unwrapping a gift from childhood
— Continued from page 20 —
of an aristocracy in our county, no family who
wasn’t touched directly or indirectly by the
fortunes of the mill. We were all in it together,
come what may, and we never went hungry.
None of that has ever left me. If anything,
those days are so deeply ingrained that I can’t
smell fresh-sawn lumber without thinking of
my step-dad’s work clothes hanging in the
laundry room, see his battered blue hardhat
sitting on the dryer next to his worn-out old
gloves, or see in my mind’s eye the towering
decks of timber sitting in the summer sunlight,
watered by sprinklers, waiting to be fed into
the sawmill.
And there were good times, too.
In this season of giving thanks, I am grate-
ful for memories of the Mill Party, a Christmas
bash for the sawmill men and their families
when the lumber industry was humming,
before it was sacrificed to know-it-alls in
the special-interest and political cabals, then
crated up and shipped off-shore to support
other families, in some other country, some-
where else in the world.
For the Mill Party — which to a young boy
was the biggest single event of the holiday
season — families would gather at the fair-
grounds, hundreds of people in their modest
Sunday best, and each child was called up to
the front of the room by a huge man dressed as
Santa Claus to receive a present.
Santa would draw your name out of a hat,
or a box, or whatever it was, and you walked
up there in front of everyone to embrace a
gift that not only meant something about
Christmas, but about what it meant to live in
a community of people who knew what hard
times really look like, knew how to spread the
wealth when things were better, and worried
fiercely about the future of an industry they
had invested their lives and the fortunes of
their families in seeing succeed.
And I can remember those years, which was
most of them, when I would ask my parents
when the Mill Party was, and they didn’t have
an answer. As an adult I can see that silence
for what it really was, and I am grateful for the
strength and the grace they had to shield their
children from the worries they carried in their
chests like a hot, heavy stone.
The mill is gone now, mostly torn down to
a rusty shell of its former self. It is the way
of things. But I will never be able to pass that
place between the train tracks and the Susan
River without hearing the noon-whistle, or
remembering that long walk down the aisle
toward an exhausted lumberman dressed as
Santa Claus, who handed me a present with a
smile. And I know now that whatever it might
have been when I was a small boy, a Tonka
truck or a brace of silver six-shooters, I will
be unwrapping that gift for the rest of my life.
The Cott onwood Caf
It’s the holiday season. Your house is
full of guests and good cheer, but you don’t
have time to cook for everyone all the time.
Lighten your load and go where the
locals go when they’re looking for a
delightful breakfast or lunch in a cozy
and welcoming setting: The Cottonwood
Café.
Enjoy the best local ingredients, art-
fully prepared, with lots of seasonal spe-
cials and vegetarian and gluten-free options. Gift the gift of this
delightful experience with a gift certificate for The Cottonwood Café (fits nicely in a stocking).
This festive, welcoming, magical cottage with the white picket fence is open for extended
hours during the holidays: they’re closed on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day — then open
every day from December 26 through January 2, 2018. Breakfast starts at 8 a.m., is served all
day; and lunch starts at 11 a.m.
The Pony Express
Even Santa Claus needs some help getting
Christmas packages where they need to go. Good
thing Sisters Country can turn to The Pony
Express.
The Pony Express has wonderful Christmas
paper, holiday-themed packaging, Christmas
cards in packs and as singles and all the accesso-
ries you need to gussy up your gifts. Then they’ll
get it off to its destination for you, making every-
thing convenient for one-stop shipping. They can
ship most anything, so if you’ve got something
unusual to send off, ask how they can help.
Be sure to check the adjacent ad for shipping deadlines, so your gifts get to their destina-
tion on time.
Come to The Pony Express for friendly, hometown service. Everyone from the North Pole
to the Pacific Northwest appreciates it!
For online shopping, giveaways,
open-house dates and more visit
facebook.com/lularoejenniferhaken
Personal Shopping Appointments
& Gift Certifi cates Available
Jennifer Haken, 541-815-2763
DETOX PROGRAM
JANUARY 11-23
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For Individuals & Families
Make your emotional
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102 E. Main Ave., Downtown Sisters
Celebrate the
Season at
Cottonwood
Café
full bar, gluten-free/vegetarian
options always available
Gift Certifi cates
Available
Extended Holiday hours:
Th -Tues 8-3, plus open every day
December 26 through January 2
403 E. Hood Ave. | 541.549.2699
BREWER SAYS...
LAST DAY TO SHIP UPS...
Ground: Wednesday 12/13
3-day: Tuesday 12/19
2-day: Wednesday 12/20
Overnight: Thursday 12/21
LAST DAY TO SHIP FEDEX...
Ground: Wednesday 12/13
3-day: Monday 12/18
2-day: Wednesday 12/20
Overnight: Thursday 12/21
Mon.-Fri., 9-5, Sat., 9-1 • 160 S. Oak St., Sisters • 541-549-1538