Saturday, December 7 – Middleburg.  Blue skies and a fair breeze punctuated a day perfect for a parade. I was ready to participate in the Middleburg Christmas Parade. Amazing as that is, just the day before, I was debating whether to cover the parade at all. The traffic . . . the parking . . . the volume of people . . .  My decision became simple when I met parade organizer, Jim Herbert, at the Middleburg Christmas Tree Lighting the previous evening.  I shared my concerns with him. “Come! Park with the other press. In fact, there is a group that can use an extra person in their truck – you can have a ‘go-pro’ experience from inside the parade route,” he told me. All of my excuses vanished.

The last time I was involved in the Middleburg Christmas Parade was in 1995 when my husband and I rode our horses with the Middleburg Hunt through the center of town. My palomino mare danced down the parade route with little regard for order. We survived then. This now, seemed manageable.

The sun warmed the afternoon. The parade route was prepared and the merchants’ decorations enhanced the holiday spirit. I arrived early. As I drove to the appropriate parking spot, I passed a line of antique roadsters all decorated for the day.  I stopped my car and jumped out to photograph the wonderful vehicles.

I found a great parking spot. After collecting my gloves, iPhone, notepad, pens, and sunglasses, I organized everything in my tartan plaid handbag and marched off to meet the parade team.

To say that it was dream come true would suggest that I had ever considered such an opportunity. This was beyond my wildest imagination!. Jim made introductions to Matt Blush, the owner and driver of the 1990 Hummer I was going to ride in. Matt is the co-founder of Warrior Aviation / Warrior Flight Team, a non-profit disabled warrior rehabilitation organization. When my iPhone’s battery faltered, the other co-founder, Pat Marsh, loaned me his charging cord. As my phone charged, he shared photos of his two military jets (more on the jets later) that are used for air shows. Pat drove the truck with the Redskins Cheerleader Alumni.

While we waited, I photographed floats, cars, horses, a marching band, the Cheerleaders, and Redskins Alumni Bubba Tyer and Pat Fischer. When the Boxwood Vineyards entry drove to our intersection, a gentleman with a red scarf and Santa hat approached our group. Cheerleader Alum, Terri Lamb, greeted him and turned to introduce me. I held out my hand to shake the hand of the man who told me his name – John Kent Cooke!! I was standing among royalty! My head was exploding!

I watched the orderly staging take place. The high school marching band was warming up across the street. Corgis and their owners kept arriving. There were alpacas with their handlers milling around the corgis. Beyond them were harriers with their basset hounds. Scottish musicians in blue kilts warmed up their instruments. There was so much to learn yet so little time! Finally, it was time for our entry to pull into place. The Fauquier High School Marching Band and their flag corps strode out before us. They were preceded by a long line of the shiny antique roadsters, riders on horseback, lasso exhibitions, and floats by wineries – Greenhill and Boxwood.

Jim gave Matt the clear, and we were off!  With my iPhone poised, we turned the corner past Federal Street. There, I saw a tall young man in a neon yellow jacket holding the leash of a black lab service dog. That young man was none other than Forrest Allen. Forrest is the young  man who was the subject of the documentary, Music Got Me Here, that played several years ago at the Middleburg Film Festival. My heart smiled to know that he is doing well.

We turned right on John Mosby Highway. Both sides of the street were lined with smiling waving people. At first I felt that I should not wave to not interfere with the Redskin alumni in the back seats. “Go ahead and wave,” Matt told me. Wave I did. Something magical happened as I waved. I connected with many people by simply waving. There were adorable children in cute headbands and hats, matching coats, precious dogs, happy people, and of course, Redskins fans!! Everyone had come to breathe in the special Christmas spirit of the little town of Middleburg. We waved, I waved. The feedback from the crowd was unexpectedly  energizing. My face was in a permanent happy smile. We turned right on S. Hamilton Street.  There, a serious Redskins fan joyfully jumped up and down and pumped his fists in support – Bubba and Pat waved back. More waves and greetings followed. Then, like that, the parade was over. But the Middleburg Christmas festivities continue.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from Middleburg, Virginia!

Stay tuned for more Festivities coverage – The Unveiling of the Fox Statue at the Community Center, and the Piedmont Singers Concert, the Wheatland Gala at Salamander Resort and Spa, and much more!