A Hartsend Holiday

Maintaining Traditions

Some residents plan months in advance for these activities. Take Melanie Cantrell, Jodie's mother. She goes shopping after Christmas each year to find wrapping paper and cards at a reduced price. Melanie starts her Christmas shopping in July. By the end of October, she has nearly all of her presents wrapped using the paper she bought the previous winter. Even so, Melanie won't have time to relax during the holiday season. As the oldest daughter in her family, she hosts Christmas dinner. 

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This dinner highlights traditions from Melanie's family. A couple of the recipes, like the one for stuffing, were handed down from her grandmother. You could also say the menu is part of family history, since the same foods are part of each Christmas dinner. Many of these are served on dishes which have been handed down and will be handed down.

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Jodie, Melanie's only daughter, is fourteen. She's expected to help her mother in these preparations. In past years, Jodie resented not being given a choice about this. But December 1970 finds her in a different state of mind. She misses her best friend Heather, who was murdered a couple of months earlier. This year Jodie realizes Christmas isn't an easy time for her mother, either, because her father died the weekend after Thanksgiving. Understanding this makes Jodie more willing to help her mother with preparations.

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An Unexpected Romance

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Even so, Jodie finds herself distracted by Karl, her first real boyfriend. Karl is a senior at Ford County High. He's also the well-liked singer for Hartsend's local band, The Electric Sheep. Practically everyone is surprised that easygoing Karl would choose a hyper caffeinated girl like Jodie. One person remarks, "Opposites attract, but I never thought they’d attract like that."

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The two have known each other for years. Jodie used to watch while her Uncle Art coached Karl in Little League. They share an interest in music-in fact, Karl taught Jodie to play the guitar when she was ten. She also feels comfortable around Karl's relatives, some of whom worked with her father at Jackson Quarry. 

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At first Melanie is concerned about a romance between a high school senior and her fourteen- year-old daughter. She insists Karl come to see her before she will agree to let Jodie date him. Karl manages to win Melanie over, bringing boxes of her favorite candy (he has help from Jodie on this).

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Festivities and Logistics

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Jodie and Karl begin dating shortly before the Christmas dances are held. This raises the question, how can he escort her if he's lead singer for the band? Karl finds a buddy to fill in at the Ford County dance but has no luck for Hartsend's dance. He and Jodie work out an arrangement where she'll sit with the band at the Hartsend dance. As a surprise, the band plays a special song just for her.

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Although Jodie is flattered, she prefers having a more conventional date at Ford County's Christmas dance. She feels quite chic walking into the dance, wearing a crushed velvet dress and Hartsend's version of platform shoes. Later, they go out with a group of Karl's friends. Jodie is conscious of being the youngest one there, both for age and experience. Fearful of embarrassing herself, Jodie clams up.

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Members of the group begin trash talk about the upcoming basketball game between Ford County and Hartsend, This leads to venting about a Hartsend player who was transferred to Ford as a way of setting a dispute. 

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Jodie knows the player who transferred and thinks he deserved better treatment. She fears the group will laugh if she says this, so she remains quiet. At that time, she misses Heather more than ever.