Chapter 12

Anya skipped happily down the sidewalk. "Hurry, Daddy! Come on, Mommy!" She said excitedly.

"Hold on, sweetie," Yor said, chuckling. "We still have time to find a good spot for the parade."

"Ah, Erntedank," Loid said with a smile. "I remember seeing it on the television, but it's a treat to witness it in person."

"I'm so glad we can go this year and Anya can enjoy the festivities with us," his wife said.

Anya paused ahead as she saw a good spot to watch the parade. "Mommy! Daddy! I found a spot for us!" She called out.

They arrived and saw it was a great spot. "Well done, sweetie," Loid said as they soon heard the parade about to start. "Ah, just in time."

The parade was wonderful and everyone cheered before going to church service, where the pastor provided a sermon of being thankful and the choir sang beautifully. Loid and Yor sang along while Anya hummed along, a big smile on her face.

After the sermon, it was time for the Thanksgiving procession, with one display showing a giant harvest crown. Anya's eyes were huge as she saw the crown. "What's that, Daddy?" She asked.

"That's the harvest crown," he said. "And very soon, the harvest queen will receive the crown."

"But how will she wear that one, Daddy? It's so big!"

Yor chuckled. "Well, that one is for the table, but she gets a smaller crown so she can wear it," she explained to her daughter.

The harvest queen soon made her appearance and accepted the harvest crown with a smile before more of the festivities kicked off. A country fair was one center of attention and Loid directed his family to it. "Let's explore the fair for a bit," he said.

Anya's eyes were wide as she saw the fair. "Wow!" She said, amazed by everything. There were all sorts of rides, games, and even food booths. One booth had pumpkins that you could paint and Anya wanted to do that. "Daddy, can I paint a pumpkin?" She asked.

"Of course, honey," he said, going over to the booth where the lady smiled at them.

"A pumpkin for each of you," she said. "Buy one, get two free. My husband and I had a good harvest this year."

"Thank you," Loid said, paying her for the one pumpkin before giving his wife one and giving Anya one. "My daughter would like to paint hers."

"Right over here," the lady said, gesturing to some tables. "There's plenty of paint and we have painting smocks for the children."

Yor selected a smock and placed it on Anya, who was eagerly ready to paint her pumpkin. Chuckling, Loid looked at the paints. "What colors do you want on your pumpkin, honey?" He asked.

"Can I have red, purple, and yellow?" The child asked.

Her father got her some paint and the child got to work, looking serious as she painted carefully. She painted a yellow circle in the middle of the area she was working on before painting a house in purple and the ground purple before painting red stars and then three people, selecting the color white for the three people. She smiled when she was done and Yor was curious. "What did you paint, sweetheart?" She asked.

"Us watching the moon," the child said. "And that's our house."

Loid smiled. "It's beautiful, Anya," he said. "We'll find a good spot for it when we get home."

Yor smiled. "Honey, may I see your pumpkin?" She asked.

He gave her the small pumpkin and she grabbed some red paint, carefully painting both pumpkins before stepping back and smiling. "There," she said.

Loid was surprised, but smiled. Anya was amazed. "Mommy, that's so pretty!" She said.

Yor smiled as she had managed to paint both pumpkins so that when you put them together, the picture on them formed a full heart with what looked like echo lines around it, as if it was beating. "I know the perfect place for this one," she said.

After they had walked around the fair, they came to an open space where the dancing had begun and Loid smiled as he watched Anya begin to dance around before she grabbed his hand and they began dancing together, making Yor smile before she joined in with her husband and daughter, all three dancing together to the lively music.

Anya giggled as she enjoyed dancing and noticed how happy many people were and how grateful many of them were for a good harvest. She then saw her parents dancing and smiled before her father scooped her up and they all continued to dance.

After they got a bit tired of dancing, a wonderful smell filled the air. "That smells good," Loid said as his stomach growled and Anya's stomach followed suit.

Yor chuckled. "Let's have something to eat," she said. "We've got time before the Lantern and Torch parade and fireworks."

"What's the Lantern and Torch parade, Mommy?" Anya asked.

"It's a parade you can join in, sweetie," she said. "Mommy and daddy will get you a lantern for it."

"Yay!" The child cheered.

They selected some delicious food from a few booths and sat down to eat. "Oh, the meat is so tender," Loid said.

"It's all delicious," Yor said before noticing Anya was eating a little fast. "Slow down, Anya. I don't want you to choke, honey."

"Okay," the child said. "Sorry, Mommy."

"It's alright," her mother said.

Loid smiled and handed his daughter a napkin. "You've got food all over your face, honey," he pointed out gently.

Giggling, Anya wiped her face off before going back to eating. After that, she was eager for the Lantern and Torch parade. "When does it start, Mommy?" She asked.

"After the evening service, sweetie," Yor replied with a chuckle. "Be patient."

The gentle reprimand made Anya nod and she smiled as her father then stood up. "Let's walk around a bit more before the evening service," he said.

As they walked around, the breeze became a bit cool, but the family was wearing jackets and scarves. "Thank goodness we brought our jackets and scarves," Yor said. "I didn't think it was going to get this cold."

"It's going to get colder soon," Loid said. "Perhaps we should find a seat in the church. It'll be warmer in there."

Anya shivered a little, hugging herself, to which her mother scooped her up and they walked into the church, finding good seats. Half-an-hour later, the evening service began and after the service, it was time for what Anya had been looking forward to.

Yor and Loid found a lantern for Anya and gave it to her as the child ran to join the other children in the parade and it was not only cute, but wholesome to see the children enjoying themselves as they walked with their lanterns and torches.

After the parade, Anya ran up to her parents just as the fireworks began and they looked up to see the pretty colors. "Wow!" Anya said in awe.

Loid chuckled. "This is the best part of the evening," he said, picking Anya up and setting her on his shoulders.

Yor smiled as they watched the beautiful fireworks until the end, everyone cheering happily before the crowds began to disperse. The family also headed for home with Yor and Loid watching the area around them, alert.

But nothing disturbed them as they made it home safely and put their pumpkins up in places that could be seen. "There," Yor said.

Anya giggled before a yawn escaped her. "Bedtime, sweetie," Loid said gently.

After the child was ready for bed and tucked in, falling sound asleep, Loid and Yor headed for their room before he pulled his wife into a hug and kissed her soundly. "I love you, my love," he said.

"I love you too, Handsome," she said, kissing him again.

Loid was grateful for his family and he swore he wouldn't trade them for anything in the world.

And that concludes "The Best Thing You Can Give Your Family Is Time." Thank you all who read, reviewed, faved, and followed this story. :)

I will freely admit that I got a lot of information about Erntedank from The German Way website. Please forgive me if I got any of it wrong as it was my first time learning about it and writing about it.

Please leave a review, but no flames!

GoldGuardian2418