If you haven't been to a parade in a small town, you haven't lived

A few months ago, my family and I moved back to my hometown. It's rural town in Oregon. Population: 3,704 (according to the U.S.  Census Bureau). Our town is small, and, like many small towns, we have a festival every year. What is this festival, you ask? What exciting theme does the entire town take hold of ? What festival do the City Counsel and townspeople alike plan for an entire year and took place just this last weekend?

The Corn Festival. Yes, the Corn Festival. 

Laugh if you must, but this is the biggest thing going on in the area that weekend... well, except the State Fair. Yup, we are so confident in our festival that it takes place the weekend the State Fair opens every year. You would think that no one would attend our measly festival, but I'll have you know the Corn Festival almost  quadruples the population of the town for one day. Not too shabby! Maybe it draws the crowds because of the free corn, maybe it's the forty four years of tradition... or maybe it's the parade that kicks off the festival.

The parade is my favorite of the festival for many reasons. First off, I've been going since I was a kid, so the parade was a big part of my childhood. Secondly, it's a really tiny town, so you are bound to know a ton of people participating in the parade. Third, it usually has a pun-filled theme. This year's theme was "The Corn Festival Parade: Every Ear Gets Better!" Get it? Ear replaced the word year, because it's called an ear of corn... I guess it really doesn't need over explaining  Lastly, we still get candy chucked at us from the floats passing by! 

I didn't realize getting candy at a parade was dying tradition until I started watching the parade with people from other areas. Apparently, other towns see it as a safety hazard so candy tossing got nixed long ago. I will live with the dangers of getting pelted in the face with a piece of taffy, and I will just remember not to run out into the middle of the street for a stray piece of candy and get hit by the parade floats. Getting candy and free treats at a parade is awesome, and the Corn Festival Parade really stepped up their game this year! Not only did my kids come home with a bag full of candy, we also got a sweet water bottle cozy, and a pepperoni stick!

Why a pepperoni stick, you ask? There was a local butcher shop (that also makes house calls, just in case you were wondering) that was in the parade this year, and instead of handing out candy, they walked around passing out pepperoni sticks. This might seem weird to you, but it made the parade for Gideon! That boy will eat anything, but he isn't really that crazy about sweets. When that pepperoni stick touched his hand, his face lit up. "I got meat!" he exclaimed. Later that day, my brother stopped by my house, and he asked the boys if they had fun at the parade. They were both excited to tell him about the horses they saw, a giant rubber ducky that was in the parade, and the bat mobile they saw. My brother then asked the kids if they got a lot of candy. "Yeah! And MEAT!"

You may also be interested to know, that we don't bother stopping traffic on the side-streets to the parade. Oh sure, we shut down Main street, but that's about it. I literally saw the parade stop twice to let cars pass through. Was it time consuming? Sure. Was it also really funny to watch? Absolutely! 

Another awesome thing about small town parades is you might get a chance to have your picture taken with one of our "local celebrities" 

This was the first time I have attended the festival in about five years, because I had been living out of the area. The last time I attended the parade, I had helped my home church put the finishing touches on their rocking '50s children's ministry float. Well, as I was working, I heard a voice behind me. I turned around, and it was the Honorable Mayor! Obviously, I had to get evidence of this magical moment, so I made him take a picture with me. As you can see, he was more than willing to play along with my nonsense. Look at a young me, making a fool out of myself... ah to be twenty again...

That wouldn't happen everywhere. You gotta love small towns!

Chyan