December 24^th

Christmas Eve

Dasher worked hard all through the day and night crossing over eight European countries.  The air was bitterly cold.  The Seven Sisters were used to it of course, but the other three needed the massive, furry blanket that lay on the sleigh.  They pulled it over them and slept most of the night.

They touched down in Germany as the sun was rising.

“I understand you have some work to do here today,” Dasher said to Joey.

“I guess so,” said Joey.

“Hop to it boy,” said Dasher.  “I’ve got to drop these two off in Denmark, then head up to the North Pole to load the big sleigh.  We’ll be back here with the full sleigh, the full team, and Santa Claus to pick you up.  Be ready to go.”

Joey looked at Princess Honning, then at Agent BAK, then back at Princess Honning.

“I’ll miss you,” he said staring into her crystal blue eyes.

“I’ll miss you too,” she said.

“I’ll come visit you once we get things straightened out around here,” said Joey.

“I’d like that very much,” she said.

“Alright, alright.  Enough of the mushy stuff.  This is a big day, and we’ve got a schedule to keep.”

“Where are we to go?” said the Seven Sisters.

“I was told you were to go with him,” said Dasher.  He nodded at Joey.  The sisters slowly glided off the sleigh.  They were completely exhausted from the energy they had expended destroying the ice.

“Me?” said Joey.

“Yes you, kid,” said Dasher.  “Santa said you’d figure out.  Something about it being a sticky problem that would swirl around in your head.”

With that, Dasher leapt into the air and was gone in a flash.

“Do you know what Santa meant?” asked Maia.

“No idea,” said Joey.

They trudged over the hill and looked into the valley below.  Joey’s idyllic Gingerbread Village was in shambles.  Roofs were torn off, colorful bits of gingerbread houses floated in the chocolate river, and whole gingerbread houses were lying on their sides.  He broke into a run and didn’t stop until he reached Gingerbread Manor.

He didn’t have to open the door because it was not longer there.  He stepped carefully inside.  The Seven Sisters caught up and followed him in.

“Mom?  Dad?  Jillian?” he called.

“Who’s that?  I’ll be right there, I’m just drying off my hands,” it was his mother’s voice.  The sound of it made him well up.

“May I help you?” his mother looked at him then gasped.  “Oh Joey, is it really you?”  She squeezed him so tightly he thought he was going to burst.  “J.J., Jillian, it’s Joey!  He’s home!”

Joey’s dad and sister rounded the corner and they all fell into a tearful embrace.

His mother kept saying, “We thought we’d lost you,” and then, “just look at this mess.” And she would laugh and point at all the molasses teardrops covering the floor.

Joey introduced the Seven Sisters to the family.  They exchanged the tales of the past couple of weeks since the storm had hit.

“Joey, you know you’ll have to ride with Santa tonight,” said his father.

“I know Dad.  Augie told me.  I can do it,” he said.

“That’s my boy.  I knew you could,” said his father.  “Now, we need to figure out how to get the ovens started so that we can get the gingerbread cookies ready in time for Santa.  There’s no electricity, and nobody’s been able to start a fire.  All the matches were soaked during the storm, and we’ve no flint.”

“Let’s head down to the factory Dad,” said Joey.  “I think I have an idea.”

They picked their way through the piled up gumdrops and slippery cobblesprees in the streets.  Part of the factory had burned down in the fire, but there were still enough ovens left to get the job done.

The Seven Sisters began to spin, and as they did so, sparks flew into the kindling that Joey had piled into the ovens.

“She’s lit!” his mother exclaimed.  “Let’s start baking.”

The lovely Christmas aroma of baking gingerbread brought all of the townspeople out.  Their dour faces transformed into sunny smiles as they realized that life would indeed begin anew.  With everyone helping, they amassed thousands and thousands of gingerbread cookies for Santa to deliver that night.

A tiny gingerbread girl tugged at Joey’s arm.  “Please Joey, did you get the cotton candy machine to work?  That’s my favorite.”  He looked at the disheveled girl.  The storm had clearly been hard on her.

“Let’s give it a try,” said Joey.  He scooped her up and walked over to the machine.  With no electricity, it wouldn’t start.  Joey rigged it up to an old stationary bike.  He began peddling very hard.  The machine started to spin and Joey’s sister Jillian gathered up the fluffy confection on a cone, and handed it to the little girl.

“Thanks!” she beamed.

Amidst all the work, Joey had nearly forgotten about getting the Seven Sisters home.  Then it hit him.  If he could get the cotton candy machine to spin fast enough, perhaps he could launch the sisters back into space!  A sticky problem that would swirl around in your head…

He and Jillian dragged the machine and stationary bike outside.  He helped position the sisters inside.

“But it’s so sticky,” said one.

“I hope this works,” said another.

“I think the gingerbread boy is cute,” said another.

“Be quiet Electra,” said yet another.

“Ladies, please!  Position yourselves and prepare for one last burst of energy.  This must work or our flame shall go out on this planet,” said Maia.  “Joey, thank you and good luck.”

Joey pumped harder than he had ever pumped in his life.  The gingerbread frame creaked and the taffy handlebars started to bend as the wheels spun faster and faster.  The cotton candy drum was spinning so fast that the sisters looked like a continuous streak of ice blue light.

Electricity crackled in the air.  Joey’s crust prickled.

“Bam!”  A thunderous bolt of lightning shot through the air.

The Seven Sisters launched from the machine and blazed into the sky.

Moments later, Santa Claus arrived right on schedule with Rudolf leading the other eight reindeer.  The Gingerbreadians loaded the sleigh with the delicious smelling gingerbread cookies.

“Mmmm, my favorite Christmas smell.   Are you ready for a big night my boy?” said Santa.

“Yes sir,” said Joey.

“You’re a good boy Joey.  And soon you’ll be a good man.  You’ve learned one of life’s most important lessons during this awful storm.  It’s what is inside you that counts.  It makes no difference how you look on the outside.  Greatness is about the decisions you make and having the courage to make them,  and it’s about what is in your heart.”

“Merry Christmas to all!” he shouted to the Gingerbreadians.  “Away!” he shouted to the reindeer.

As they rose in the sky, the Pleiades star cluster was particularly sparkly.  Joey nestled close to Santa and thought he must be the happiest gingerbread boy in the world.

Fun Fact:

Reindeer are from the deer family and most live way up north in the Subarctic and Arctic regions, including a region named Lapland.  The reindeer who are not lucky enough to pull Santa’s sleigh, are sometimes used to pull ‘pulks’, which are sleighs or toboggans, either for sport or to transport goods.

Merry Christmas from The Solvang Bakery! 

© All rights reserved, The Solvang Bakery and JP Farrell

December 23^rd

Alive, a Kringle, and a Sweet Ride

The team had worked through the ice until the sun sat too low in the sky for their laser beam to work.  The water had flowed so quickly that the boat sped past Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Moldova, and was now gliding through Ukraine.

The humans had all cheered and let them pass untouched back to their rooms in the medical ward.  For their last night, Queen Moswen slept in Princess Honning’s room, along with the Seven Sisters.  Agent BAK, ever the professional, had stood guard.

Augie slept at the foot of Joey’s bed.  When Nurse Schlimm delivered the morning tray, Augie didn’t even need to hide.

“Morning ma’am,” he said to Nurse Schlimm.

“Yes, I suppose it is,” she said.  “You appear to be Master of the Obvious.”  Then turning to Joey, she said, ”Enjoy your breakfast Joseph.  I suspect you’re quite hungry today.”

“Thanks Nurse Schlimm.  I am pretty hungry,” said Joey.  The nurse managed the smallest of smiles, then turned and left.

“Boy, she’s a real live one,” said Augie.  “I bet she’s been two barrels of fun.”

“She really scared me at first,” said Joey.  “But now I’m kind of used to her.”

“You sure you still want me to go today?” asked Augie.

“It’s the only way Augie,” said Joey.  “You’re the only one I can trust to get Queen Moswen safely to Egypt.  And it will take your connections to get her there in time.”

“Yeah, old Johnny won’t let me down.  We’ve stayed in pretty good touch since the academy.  I know he can get us on a speed craft today and drop Queen Moswen down to the Nile Delta by tomorrow morning,” said Augie.  “Say Joey, I know it’s hard, but uh, maybe we should talk about your family.”

Joey took a deep breath.   “Are Mom and Dad … are they …. dead Augie?”

“Dead?  Is that what you thought Joey?  Heavens no, they’re not dead.  They sent me off to look for you the moment the blizzards stopped.  Your dad was really angry he couldn’t come himself.  He got pretty banged up trying to help people.  He’s missing half his leg, and your mom took out a chunk of her shoulder.  They both lost a lot of molasses and are too weak to travel.”

“And Jillian?” asked Joey.  “Is she … whole?”

“She’ll be alright.  A few chunks missing here and there, but she’ll be okay.”

Joey was so relieved he hardly knew what to do with himself.  The uncomfortable feeling that had been sitting in his tummy vanished.  A broad smile stretched across his brown face.

“Hey Joey,” said Augie.  “You realize, you’ll need to accompany Santa tomorrow night, right?  Neither your dad nor your mom can make such a journey.  It would do them in.  And your sister is just too young.”

“But how can I get home to make the journey Augie?” said Joey.

“I might be able to help with that.”  It was Doctor Delicious.  Joey had been so focused on the state of his family that he hadn’t noticed the doctor enter the room.

“But how Doc?” asked Joey.

“Remember when I told you my name was Doctor David Delicious?”

“Yes,” said Joey.

“Well, that’s not entirely true,” said the doctor.  “Then again, it’s not untrue either.  My full name is David Delicious Kringle.”

“But I still don’t…”

“Joey,” the doctor interrupted, “my cousin’s name is Kris.”

Joey paused.  “You mean you’re Santa’s cousin?!”

“In the half-Elven flesh,” said the doctor.

“But, you said you’d never seen magical creatures,” said Joey.

“Other than my cousin, I hadn’t until you came along,” said Dr. Delicious.  “We only saw my cousins a few times at Christmas many centuries ago.  They lived all the way up in Lapland in Finland.”

“But aren’t you magical then?” asked Joey.

“Mostly no.  I’m only half-Elven.  I was born with a mind for medicine, but without Kris’s magical powers.  You see, Joey, we all have special gifts to give the world.  Mine’s being a doctor and helping sick people.  That’s really Santa’s message and a big part of the message of Christmas.  Take the gifts you’ve been given and go out and do good in the world.”

“Now, enough about that.  While I was watching you bravely breaking up the ice yesterday, that young lady bent my ear a bit.”

“You mean Princess Honning?” asked Joey.

“Yes, that’s the one.  One of the few bits of magic that I possess is the ability to contact my cousin,” said the doctor.  “That and a pretty long life span.”  He winked at Joey.

“Follow me,” said the doctor.

They followed the doctor to Princess Honning’s room.  Per the doctor’s instruction, they said good-bye to Queen Moswen and Augie.

“Good luck getting back,” Joey said to the queen.  “And thanks again for saving me from that awful Helmut guy.”

“It was nothing,” squeaked the queen.  “I offer my gratitude for seeing to my safe and timely passage home.”

“Take care of her,” he said to Augie.  Augie stood at attention.

Princess Honning, Agent BAK, and the Seven Sisters all bid their farewells.

“Quickly now,” said the doctor.  They hurriedly followed him to the top of the ship.  The view of the Black Sea stretched out before them.

“There it is,” said the doctor.

Joey heard far off bells.  He looked up just in time to see a sleigh pulled by a single reindeer descend from the heavens.

“Hey Doc,” said the reindeer.

“How’ve you been Dasher?” asked the doctor.

“Feeling fit Doc, feeling fit.”

“These the folks?” Dasher nodded toward the four magical creatures.

“Yes, take good care of them Dasher,” said Dr. Delicious.

“Will do Doc.  Chop, chop.  Hop in.  I’ve got to be back to the North Pole by tomorrow.”

Princess Honning, Agent BAK, and the Seven Sisters climbed aboard the sleigh and were off.

© All rights reserved, The Solvang Bakery and JP Farrell

December 22nd

A Homemade Laser and Poseidon

The day dawned with a brilliant sunrise.  After breakfast and final preparations, the group assembled on the deck.  At 11:45 a.m., Agent BAK and Augie had worked their way to the door of the Captain’s Bridge.

Augie tapped on the glass window of the door, then ducked.  The first mate stepped out, but tripped over Agent BAK who had stretched himself like a rope across the threshold.  The captain stepped out to help him up.  Before they knew what was happening, Augie and Agent BAK had slipped into the bridge and locked the door behind them.  The captain and first mate pounded on the glass, but Augie and Agent BAK just ignored them.  They pulled the cord of the great ship’s whistle.

“That’s our signal,” said Joey.

“Are you sure you want to go through with this?” asked Princess Honning.  “It’s terribly dangerous.  If you’re off by only a few millimeters it will disintegrate you.”

“I’m the only who can do it,” said Joey, “so I must.”  Princess Honning kissed his cheek.  Joey’s brown cheeks glowed crimson.

The Seven Sisters hovered over the center of the deck.  Joey stood at the bow and slightly to the side.  The sun bore down on them from above.  The Seven Sisters grew and glowed and sparked.  Brighter and brighter they became until a hot, sizzling beam of light shot from them straight at Joey’s head.

Joey braced himself and caught the beam perfectly square on the plate on his forehead.  He reflected the white hot beam into the massive chunks of ice that blocked the ship’s path.  They exploded the moment the beam struck them.

As Joey concentrated, a single voice rose from the sisters.  It was Alcyone.

“Oh great Poseidon, God of the Seven Seas.  Let the waters of the mighty Danube flow faster than ever before.  I shall be home to you soon.

Joey had to concentrate even harder now.  The ship began to move with tremendous speed.  Joey deftly moved his head to guide the beam.  It struck iceberg after iceberg.  At such high speeds, a single iceberg would sink the ship.

Joey was just barely aware of the land that was speeding by their sides.  Queen Moswen sat on Princess Honning’s shoulder.  Together, they kept guard.  Many humans approached, but none confronted them.  They were in awe of what was taking place…and too frightened to spoil the miracle that was occurring before them.

© All rights reserved, The Solvang Bakery and JP Farrell