On December 5th, all kinds of spectators lined the street in Montrose. Many families were watching the Montrose Christmas Parade together sitting on their camp chairs and beanbags. There were also a few passersby shopping or eating at restaurants on the street, which was festooned with holiday decorations. The color guard from the high school, too, looked more festive than usual.

In front of me were students from a local taekwondo studio. Every couple minutes, they would stop and perform a stunt: one would sail over his prone classmates and break a board in the hands of their instructor, who would shout words of encouragement. Whenever a student broke a board, the people watching nearby would cheer. One time, the board stubbornly refused to be broken, and I looked on in desperation as the rest of the parade slowly moved on without us. After seven cries of “One more try!”, the board gave in and separated, letting us rejoin the procession.

I realized for the first time what Greyhound buses are named after when I saw the greyhounds further in front of us. Ironically, they looked lithe and rapid, a far cry from the boxy frame of a bus. This also meant that they don’t have much fur to keep them warm, so many of them had on holiday sweaters. One even had a shiny red bulb on its snout and plush antlers on its head as a nod to our favorite reindeer, Rudolph.

To be honest, I was new, and at first I had no idea what I was doing in the parade or what it was all about. But as we neared the end, it mattered less to me and I simply enjoyed the festive music, bright colors, and smiling people.


<Michael Linde, La canada High School 11th Grade>