It had to be one of the shortest parades of all times.
Oh, there have been those in the grocery store alley on our broomstick horse, around Frankie’s Miniature Ranch riding Spot in make believe of the big time, and this one wasn’t as short as those, but it came close.
Brief distance was made up by quality. There was a Fort Riley color guard, marching band, modern-day Army trucks with apparatus, world class high school drum corps, restored antique tractors, shiny colorful classic cars, decorated bicycles, of course, a politician or two, and we didn’t even have the only horse there.
Besides Mae hooked to the high wheeled cart, a flashy team of ponies pulled a shortened hay rack with the Class of ’64 aboard.
Plans called for the 1880s antique, four-wheeled, fringed-topped carriage, but pour down at light forced us to call parade organizers and request to bring the cart instead. That was the least of their concerns with all of the advance celebration planning.
A bright rainbow filled the western sky as we pulled into town, and conditions were pleasant for about a two-block procession, even though we were harnessed, hooked and ready ten times longer than the affair lasted.
Our pet peeve meriting snide, horses were at parade’s end, so others wouldn’t chance their aftermath, and the color guard was back several minutes before we started.
Best part, besides no rain on the parade, we had the honor of presenting Meatloaf Royalty in our horse-drawn vehicle.
As winner of last year’s Paxico Meatloaf Festival competition, the nice grandma draped in a velveteen red cape, sported a jeweled queen’s turban , while waving flowing-ribbon-bound chef’s spoon scepter.
Her blond, blue-eyed, pink-cheeked granddaughter in white chiffon gown was a Dorothy lookalike adorned in glistening-stoned princess tiara as presenting similar kitchen staff, and attempting to throw chocolate treats for crowded roadside applause.
While there surely were many, we heard no reports of broken cameras as Mae’s driver was forcibly in hundreds of photographs snapped as the royalty cart passed.
Reminds us of Revelation 4:3: “There was a rainbow all round,” so Second Chronicles 20:28: “It was an exuberant parade.” However, Acts 8:27: “The queen was in charge,” and Psalm 45:13: “The princess is very beautiful.” Consequently, Daniel 7:14: “There was all the glory of royalty.”
+++ALLELUIA+++