I love a small-town parade; Pinedorado’s one of a kind

Little cars are all nestled back in their shed. The train also has been put back to bed. The barbecue grills have all been scrubbed clean. And nary a game prize will ever be seen. The clowns are all gone, the marching bands, too. But, the memories keep building for me and for you.

What can I say? Pinedorado has always been such a sentimental time for me. With my sons long grown and gone, I see those little firetrucks, airplanes and cars and smile remembering them eagerly waiting in line just to go around in circles. With glee. Now, I see parents I remember watching fit easily into the little metal chassis ushering their own little ones into them!

A homecoming for many, a time capsule opened, a party, an excuse, work, play, laughs and tears, old friends, new friends, public displays of affection, sticky faces, bingo brain, hamburger booth hair, boxes of new wineglasses won at the coin toss, toys and trinkets amassed at the game booths, I’ll be picking corn on the cob out of my teeth for days.

The car show was over the top, the raffle prizes were, too, by sheer number of donations made toward the cause of supporting the Lions Club and having fun. I love the art project — how wonderful to get everyone openly engaged in creating!

I played bingo for the first time this year! What small-town celebration would be complete without it, I say! Only took me 35 years. Indoctrinating my sister who is visiting from L.A., I had to give her a taste of everything we had to offer. She won $7, and I won $5! I’m hooked. Of course, we’d started the weekend there at the Joslyn Center with the waffle breakfast — my weekend wouldn’t be complete without it.

Yes, every inch of curb or dirt had a car parked on it and there were moments of near elbow-to-elbow foot traffic as well! Hooray for our town being the place to be for Labor Day weekend! It would appear all the hard work of the Lions and everyone else involved paid off.

And, what can I say… the parade! I heard a lot of people express they thought this was a really great one. The pacing was better (“Let us look at everyone and appreciate them! Don’t run them up each other’s tails!” I realize not everyone can control that — say, if someone requires the ambulance to come back down the route to collect someone in the street.)

From my vantage point on a float this year, as opposed to under one, I was joyed to see all the strangers waving and bouncing along with the music and simply engaging with the parade as one would hope they would. My mom, having grown up in a tiny farming community in Wisconsin, would take us any chance she could to any small-town parade — a dog parade in Cherry Valley, a Lilac Parade in Acton … whatever. It just makes you feel like home. Makes me feel like home, anyway.

And so to the Lions, the Joslyn Center, all the other service groups and organizations who volunteered countless hours in booths, in preparation and in cleaning up, participants who decorated floats, friends and family who came from near and far — I thank you for reconfirming that life in a small town rocks.

This story was originally published September 7, 2016 at 9:42 AM with the headline "I love a small-town parade; Pinedorado’s one of a kind."