Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-12-16
Christmas Memories

everybody Is pussy just HOW LHlHh-
Ing Of, if not actually preparing for,
out the best in all dispositions. 1t
is hard not to be able to give just
the things we would like to bestow
on our friends, but If you could go
with me, even in imagination to that
land across the Pacific, and see the
meager stores that the missionaries
are working with you would become
reconciled to do the best you can
with what you have here. The high
cost of living has struck the world,
and this wonderful land that we live
in is called by the Japanese the "rice
country" for enough rice to those
people means almost the same as
"millionaire" does to us.
You remember that I spent six
Christmas seasons over there, and
hear from there right often even
yet.
The kindergarten children always
have a tree filled with presents that
they made for their parents, and they
are the happiest lot of youngsters
you would want to see. They are
taught that it is more. blessed to
give than to receive, a new lesson
for those people.
The Sunday school board allowed
tended Sunday school, and we had to
do some tall planning" to get the
things that suited the different ages
with the cash on hand, and you know
that. our own funds did not allow
us to have much to add to any fund.
1 remember one Christmas that the
three ladies in the girls school
wanted to have all the other Amer
leans in that city to eat dinner with
r. tot
expenses, and no presents for our
guests. I bought a little toy tree
not more than inches high; you
sometimes see them over here in
Japanese stores. Mine cost cents.
Then I bought horns and dolls and
dishes. I wrote a comic verse for
each present. They were as small
as the tree, the horns about an inch
long and nothing even three inches
long Each rhyme was supposed to
fit the one receiving the present. One
dollar more than paid for everything
but we had many a hearty laugh
over that tree. 1t was a surprise
to very one and of course that added
to the mirth.
Several times 1 wrote to America
and got all the leftover illustrated
lesson cards the Atlanta Sunday
schools had not used, and many
1 got a Japanese Christian to put the
golden text that was printed in Eng
lish into the japanese language and
gave them to the friends Of the chill
dren, the ones that came TO our
Christmas trees. Such souvenirs
were as much appreciated as their
pictures are over here.
In the school that the Methodist
church has in Hiroshima, Japan,
~ fhraa baDV
organs they were called, and they
were so small that man could put
one on his shoulder and take 1t any
where just as sack of flour is
handled here. One of them was USED
in the free kindergarten all the week
and then it was used at the chapels
Sunday afternoons and night. we
missionaries used to take the Chris
tian Japanese girls that were in the
school and scatter out to the rented
rooms every chance that We had and
teach classes. Then when Christmas
came we had some sort OF exercises
at each place and taught the multi
tude, for you never saw, even at
circus, the crowds that can gather
in one of those cities on the slightest
provocation. These rented rooms
were usually in a house occupied by
a native Christian, and it was always
a great pleasure to them to help with
year the man said that his family
would like to furnish the decoraoo
lions. We turned over to them 80
cents to buy material for that pur-
pose, and when we walked In l was
astonished. The ceiling of the room
was made to represent an arbor. and
the most luscious looking grapes
hung among the leaves. At one side
a vine was simulated and l felt as
if | were really under an arbor. We
had recitations, a talk by the Japa,
nese helper, a number Of songs. all
in the Japanese language, and then
the distribution of the gif It's to the
children that attended that Sunday
school. There is where some of the
cards from our American Sunday
school children went, as souvenirs to
the visitors.
l did not see a turkey while I was
ever there, the missionaries usually
had a roast or a nice fat hen, and
sometimes our friends in the United
States sent us fruit cake. Once
1 had a six-pound cake sent to me,
and on the way across it was packed