His big ears gave him away!
Elf, Brian Davis, wore a green hat that almost covered his huge, pointy ears, but they were still obvious. He was an elf, and there was no hiding it. And today, Elf Davis was on a mission.
“We are having the Vestavia Hills Christmas Parade, and guess what?” Elf Davis said. He took a big breath, then continued while having a hard time containing his elation, “Santa himself . . . is here. He cleared his schedule to be with us, and we are so thrilled. I cannot believe Santa is participating in our parade.”
A couple of children passing by heard Elf Davis; one stopped and shouted, “SANTA IS HERE? Have you seen Rudolph?”
Elf Davis grinned saying, “I haven’t seen the reindeer yet, but they are getting ready. And yes children, Santa . . . Is here.” The two kids ran off excitedly.
One of the thousands across America, the Vestavia Hills Christmas Parade included plenty of decorated floats, cars, trucks, and trailers; all full of face-painted children wearing costumes and spreading Christmas cheer. They threw chocolate and candy at the families filling both sides of the street in the Liberty Park neighborhood. Riding on a trailer full of tiny elves, one child shouted that he had just spotted Santa. The eyes of the child next to him widened while she covered her mouth, took a deep breath, then let out a scream.
The Christmas spirit was everywhere at the Vestavia Hills Christmas Parada in Alabama.
“Many Christmas parades are going on today across our land, and you know what?” Elf Davis said, “Every one of them truly brings out the community spirit. So much of our community participates from banks and moving companies, to Girl Scouts, to schools, to sports and social clubs. The entire city of Vestavia Hills comes out, and you get to sample the community feel of our town. That’s the purpose of Christmas parades after all: To gather folks and cheer, and to make the holidays touchable.”
As the parade proceeded down Main Street, the screaming children shouted at the floats and ate loads of chocolate and candy, while their parents tried to moderate the sugar intake. One thing was certain: Christmas parades do bring out the Christmas spirit in communities across America.
Vestavia Hills residents Anthony and Monica Krontiras watched the parade with their daughter Mary Katherine. Monica grew up in Vestavia Hills, and she loves attending the parade every year with her family.
“What a wonderful day for our city, to see the entire community come together and celebrate Christmas and the holiday season,” Monica Krontiras said. “The best part is the smiles on all of the children’s faces when they see Santa. It’s precious, so precious.” At the end of the parade, cheerleaders and majorettes lead the Vestavia Hills High School marching band as they play Christmas tunes. Then it happened: A huge fire truck made its way among the cheering crowds with Santa himself on top waving and hollering, “Ho ho ho.” Children pointed awe-struck, and one child held on to his mom’s hand, all agape. Marching behind the truck and waving were all the helper elves. Elf Davis came close to the child and handed him a piece of candy.
The child pointed to elf Davis’ big ears while leaning back with his mouth still wide open. Elf Davis laughed, waved at the child, then disappeared.
Eight of America’s Most Unique Christmas Parades:
This December, dazzling and shimmering lights will adorn parades in small towns and huge cities across America. The Atlanta Journal & Constitution listed the eight most unique Christmas Parades in the country:
Orlando, Florida: How can you not be number one when Mickey himself joins Santa?
Atlanta, Georgia: This one is considered one of the longest parades in the country.
Reston, Virginia: Here, you will see floats as well as Macy’s-Parade-style balloons.
Portland, Oregon: This nautical-theme Christmas parade has taken place for 60 years.
Calistoga, California: The small agricultural town does it right with a tractor theme.
New York, New York: They celebrate here with the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Annapolis, Maryland: This Christmas parade has gone on for 35 years with elaborate floats.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: A 120-year tradition of mummies parading on New Year’s Day.
