December 23, 1964
Jocie Brooke here reporting from Hollyhill, Kentucky on Christmas Eve Eve. How do you like our tree. I needs some strands of popcorn. As soon as I get my homework done, I’m going to help Aunt Love with stringing the popcorn. I’ll probably sneak a few bites too. Nobody could have a bowl of popcorn in her lap without tasting some of it.
I can’t wait for Christmas. Why does Christmas have to take so long to get here? Last week before we got out of school for Christmas break, the days were dragging so slow that I began to think all the clocks had stopped. That maybe the sun was standing still.
Dad preached once about the sun standing still. I forgot what Old Testament book had that story, but I asked Aunt Love. She may be forgetful about other things, but she knows where things are in the Bible. Dad says the Lord must be rewarding her for her many years of storing Scripture in her heart. Dad gave me a look then. I knew what he was thinking, so I told him I’d make a New Year’s resolution to memorize a new Bible verse every week. Of course, I did that last year too, and I did memorize some. Made it all the way to March before I skipped a week. But I can’t remember them the way Aunt Love can. She can quote Scripture all day and know book and verse too. Anyway, she told me where I could find the Scripture about God making the sun stand still. She said it had nothing to do with Christmas coming, but then when you think about it, everything in the Bible has a little to do with Christmas coming. That is, the Savior being born.
Here are the verses from Joshua. And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies. Is not this written in the book of Jasher? So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day. And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the Lord hearkened unto the voice of a man: for the Lord fought for Israel. (Joshua 10:13-14)
Can you imagine that? Had to be pretty amazing. And freaky scary! Dad says you wouldn’t have any reason to be afraid as long if you were trusting in the Lord. But think about it? The sun standing still and not letting night come?! People must have been shaking their wristwatches to see if they were broken. Dad laughed when I told him that. They didn’t have wristwatches. Of course, I knew that. They told time with sundials. And the shadow didn’t move on those sundials for a whole day.
That’s what it felt like at school last week. Time didn’t stand still. The sun made its regular up and down circuit, but it did seem slow. But now it’s almost Christmas. And I can’t wait! Last year I got a new bike. I’m still in a kind of shocked wonder over that. I never thought I’d ever have a new bike. But it’s fun to ride without having to worry about the chain popping off or the tires going flat twice before I get anywhere.
What do I want this year, you ask. A desk! I would love to have my very own desk with drawers and a hole for my knees. There’s room in the corner of my room. And it would be great to have a place to put my typewriter besides the rickety card table somebody at church gave us instead of throwing it away.
What is something you wanted for Christmas when you were around my age?