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.She bent to stroke Miracle’s head but hastily withdrew her hand when Miracle curled her lip and uttered a low, warning growl.The vet laughed.“After what this old girl has been through, I suppose she is entitled to be a bit cranky with me.”“I appreciate all your help,” Alice said.“We want to find the very best home for her that we possibly can.”“Wish me luck.” Louise looked as if she were readying for a confrontation rather than going to a rehearsal after dinner.“Luck,” Jane said.“Don’t worry, Louie.I have a feeling it’s going to go better this evening.”“I surely hope so.Karin is over her illness, so there will be two of us again.That alone gives me comfort.” She paused.“Would it be really, really wrong of me to wish the Trimble brothers would catch whatever she had?”Alice and Jane burst out laughing.“Beyond wrong,” Alice said.“Now go on.Jane and I will say a prayer for you.”“I’m going to need it,” Louise muttered beneath her breath as she selected her gray wool dress coat from the closet.But her sisters’ prayers must have worked.As the children filed into the Assembly Room a short time later, they all seemed happy and ready to rehearse.Even Morley Trimble was cheerful.“I got three dollars from my daddy for being brave at the doctor!” he told Louise.Her eyebrows rose.“Indeed.”Karin Lindars chuckled.“Inflation, just like the tooth fairy.When I was small, I got Swedish currency worth about two cents American.Now the kids get dollars.”The last child arrived.“All right, boys and girls.” Louise clapped her hands.“Tonight I would like to rehearse all the group songs quickly, and then practice our processional.Afterward, everyone but the soloists may be dismissed.”They practiced “The night goes with weighty step” and the lovely round she had found, “Santa Lucia, thy light is glowing.” She was surprised, pleasantly so, at how well most of the children knew the lyrics.She had given each family a printout with the songs on it, but she really had not expected that the children would practice diligently.Apparently, she had underestimated them.“Very nice job!” she told her young charges.“Now let’s line up and we’ll sing ‘Hark! Through the Darksome Night’ as we process.Do you all remember your places in the line?”They did.Louise barely could conceal her relief.Karin, who skillfully lined up the children, was smiling.“This is going to be lovely.”“How are the costumes coming along?”“Quite well.We are using a set of old children’s choir robes for all of them.A friend of mine has borrowed them from a church in Lancaster.Mrs.Trimble is making long wands for all the star boys.I admit it gives me pause thinking of handing long sticks to all those active little guys.”Louise laughed.“Yes, I can understand that.”“I bought tinsel for all the girls except the Lucia, and we’re using a wide red ribbon for her sash.The only part that is giving me problems is the Lucia’s crown.”“How so?”“I’ve tried using a number of things to fashion a circlet that would hold those battery-operated candles, but I can’t seem to get it right.”“What did you use in Minnesota?”“Each year, one family loaned us a crown that had been passed down through the generations but I have had no luck locating anyone here who has something like that.”Louise thought for a moment.“What about using the frame of an Advent wreath? It is open in the center for the Christ candle, so it probably would fit down over Marit’s head far enough and there are four candleholders on it.Perhaps we could use craft glue to affix the electric candles to it.Once it is covered with greens, no one will be able to see the frame anyway.”“That’s a wonderful idea.I wonder where I could get an Advent wreath frame.”“Why don’t we check with Rev.Thompson? Perhaps there is something suitable here at the chapel.”After several practices of the processional, Louise dismissed the children, keeping Marit and two other girls for a bit of one-on-one work.Finally, she was satisfied with the songs.The other soloists left, and Marit settled down with a book to wait for her mother.Karin and Louise settled onto chairs in the front row to review their plans.Costumes and the service were in good shape.“I gave your recipe to Jane,” Louise told Karin.“She will bake the saffron buns.”“And I am making gingerbread.I’ll do a punch too.”“Decorations.Are there any traditional ones?” Louise asked.“In my research, I found very little about decor.Apples and eucalyptus were mentioned, I believe.”“Since the Lucia’s sash is red, we could make eucalyptus swags to hang on the pews and decorate them with red ribbons.In addition, I saw some lovely miniature apples at a store in Riverton the other day.Those would brighten the swags a bit
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