When I run short on inspiration, I can count on Mrs. Southwick's sixth grade for help. So when I approached the class about Christmas decorating ideas for my yard, which is looking pretty dismal this time of year, I was not disappointed.
"She really needs the help," Mrs. Southwick said.
The students took a few minutes to write down their best ideas, and then they read them to me. What follows is some of the best of them.
"A trellis around the door is always a charming touch. It can be covered in evergreen vines, which would look particularly festive this time of year. If you like, you could put lights in among the vines, or you could dress it up with a few red bows." It was a good suggestion, especially coming from a young woman whose name is the same as one of the types of vine that might go on that trellis.
She wasn't the only one to suggest greenery. One young man suggested a hedge, a wall of greenery. He may have gotten the idea because he was named for someone who might have worked at building walls. The hedge would be a backdrop for the words "Merry Christmas," written in lights.
Another young man wanted more pine trees, a mini-forest, is how he put it. I suspect that's because HIS name suggest how some of those trees might be cut down.
"If I may, a Charlie Brown Christmas tree would better suit her abilities," another student piped up. She also suggested several plastic inflatables might fit my skill level.
"So help me, Hannah," another interjected. "A sleigh with some reindeer would look nice, even in Mrs. Howell's yard.
Perhaps because her name is the same as that of a store where you might buy some of the items, one person wrote a list of nine things; among them plastic plants and other Christmas decorations.
By far the most common recommendation was to make some salt dough ornaments. Recipes abound online. Or you can corner one of Mrs. Southwick's sixth graders, and they'll give you a recipe for it. Some of their names might even suggest colors you could use to paint it.
When Mrs. Howell is not plagiarizing from Mrs. Southwick's sixth grade class, she teaches English at Great Basin College.
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