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All through the years, Christmastime on our islands has all the time been a serious milestone of the winter season. For the Marco Seashore Boys, Christmas on the seashore has all the time been entertaining—and made much more so—by all the individuals and personalities that graced our lives. The character and vibrancy of every Seashore Boy or Lady who walked up and requested for a job has all the time left a novel signature on each different member of our crew.
On many events, newcomers to the Seashore Boy crew had been met with trepidation and doubt. To start with, everybody was American born and principally from the identical background, however when our boss Jim got here down at some point and introduced, “I’ve employed a redneck.” Our world as we knew it fell aside. On the time, there have been solely 4 Seashore Boys and we had been flustered, annoyed, and greater than anxious to fulfill the brand new addition from cowboy nation in central Florida.
All of our doubts had been quickly erased, nonetheless, when Timmy L got here on board with a constructive angle and a really well mannered method. Timmy all the time answered with, “Sure mam, or no sir,” to everybody—even to individuals his personal age—and his down-home Florida cowboy customs turned simply acceptable for all of the others that labored by his aspect.
The following cultural problem for the Seashore Boys was when Jim got here down and introduced, “I’ve employed a Mexican.” This introduced extra considerations about how properly we might handle cultural variations till we met our new addition named Carlos. We cherished him directly. Carlos was cool; he was formally a divemaster from Cozumel Mexico. He may drive any boat, train crusing, and he knew the aquatic surroundings higher than most. Carlos was one in every of us and we knew directly his emotions had been the identical.
The next addition to our crew got here simply forward of a Christmas season, when Jim as soon as once more got here down with the announcement, “I’ve employed a German.”
When Jim launched us to JP—Jean Pierre—we thought at first Jim was mistaken with JP’s nation of origin. This shortly modified when JP beginning talking English with a German accent and defined that he was born in somewhat village close to the French border and his mom appreciated all the pieces French. Very quickly in any respect, JP was one in every of us. He was a tough employee, he got here in early and stayed late and he was excellent at crusing and basic seamanship, and like Timmy, and Carlos, JP was additionally very cool with a fun-loving character.
Within the days main as much as the busy Christmas season, one of many much less glamorous jobs of December was to scrub all the lounge chairs for the various friends that had been coming for the vacations. Mildew has all the time been an enemy within the south Florida surroundings, and over time, all the chairs wanted a very good cleansing with bleach. All 700 of them.
The outdated saying of “whistle whilst you work” would possibly maintain true for some, however for the Marco Seashore Boys through the chair cleansing ritual, we shared tales from our properties and every of our lives.
Timmy started along with his Christmas traditions in central Florida and defined that when Christmas was over, the Florida cowboy folks gathered up all of the outdated dried out timber and made a large bonfire for New 12 months’s Eve.
Carlos associated his childhood Mexican custom of Las Posadas. He defined that posadas means “inn” in Spanish, and from the 16th of December till Christmas Eve, all the youngsters of a neighborhood would go singing door to door each night and asking if there was any room on the inn. This was to represent Mary and Joseph trying to find shelter. After the Mexican caroling was full, every evening was then celebrated by a Posadas occasion.
After Carlos described his childhood Christmas, JP from Germany joined in to inform us his rendition of Christmas in Deutschland.
“Oh, Carlos,” JP teased with good nature. “What an enthralling little Christmas journey you’ve got in Mexico. And Timmy, your cowboy bonfire seems like one thing the boy scouts would do.”
JP then paused as he flipped a seashore chair for cleansing the underside. “Let me inform you,” JP started in earnest along with his German accent. “Sure after all, these traditions are good and well mannered, however in Germany, all the youngsters are somewhat terrified of what Christmas would possibly carry.” After this assertion, everybody stopped cleansing and seemed up.
“Do you imply that in Germany the okids are afraid of Christmas?” Timmy requested with amazement. “What do you imply frightened?”
“So,” JP smiled, “Forgive me. I didn’t say that the youngsters in Germany are afraid of Christmas. I mentioned that the youngsters in Germany are afraid of what Christmas would possibly carry.”
At this level, all chair cleansing actions stopped as JP leaned on his chair cleansing brush and along with his great accent, launched into the legend of the Knecht Ruprecht.
“In Germany,” JP’s story started, “we even have Father Christmas who’s principally Santa Claus. He appears to be like the identical with the pink coat, and trousers and hat. However in Germany, Santa Claus has a helper who rides beside him within the sleigh. That is the Knecht Ruprecht and he appears to be like very completely different from elves or Santa Claus. This can be a scary determine sporting all black and he carries a giant bag of coal and a protracted strolling stick. In every single place Father Christmas goes, the Knecht Ruprecht goes with him. All through Germany, this can be a story that’s well-known. Santa or Father Christmas brings the bag of toys for the great ladies and boys, however the Knecht Ruprecht comes alongside in case the youngsters have been dangerous or disobedient to their dad and mom.
“Yearly, the dad and mom will ask the youngsters if they’ve been good. The youngsters nearly all the time reply, ‘Sure,’ as a result of they know if they’ve been dangerous, the massive, tall, tough man dressed fully in black with soot on his face will beat the youngsters along with his strolling stick and fill the dangerous children’ stockings with coal.”
“Rattling,” Timmy drawled, that sounds fairly tough. “This large man in black whips the youngsters in the event that they’ve been dangerous? Even the little children would possibly get a whipping?”
JP got here again quick, “Sure, after all. That’s why I mentioned the youngsters are afraid of what Christmas would possibly carry.”
“That does sound scary,” Carlos spoke up. “Did you ever see this Christmas villain wearing black?”
“Sure after all,” JP replied, “however while you’re younger, you don’t know that the Knecht Ruprecht is your uncle or your neighbor with coal mud throughout his face. Particularly when all the youngsters are wanting on the strolling stick that is perhaps hassle.”
A couple of days later, Jim got here all the way down to the seashore hut and introduced, “I’ve employed a lady,” and all of us dropped all the pieces to cease and stare. After watching our reactions, Jim smiled and supplied. “She gained’t be a stranger to all of you. She’s JP’s spouse Christine.”
The following day, Christine arrived wearing Seashore Boy shorts and a golf shirt. She verified the Knecht Ruprecht Christmas story, and as soon as once more we had been fascinated with the worldwide implications of Christmas. We had been additionally very impressed with Christine from Hamburg. She was our very first Seashore Lady ever and he or she was stunning.
The second Seashore Lady arrives subsequent week.
Tom Williams is a Marco islander. He’s the creator of two books, “Misplaced and Discovered” and “Surrounded by Thunder –the Story of Darrell Mortgage and the Rocket Males.” Each books can be found on Kindle and Nook.
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