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To Maye’s surprise, the next few hours flew by. Between the crafts, the snacks, and the socializing, her mind was fully occupied.

“Okay,” Tracy said in a serious tone. “We need to get a good spot for the tree lighting.”

Maye followed Tracy as she weaved through the crowd to find a spot as close to the tree as possible. It had grown at least two feet, but would still be at least a few years before they would need a ladder to put on the tree topper.

“That’s it?” Maye asked. “That’s the tree they’re using?”

“Well, they only planted it last year,” Tracy said.

“Right, I know. But I thought they’d bring in, like, a full-size tree or something,” Maye gestured widely with her arms.

“Did you just mime a giant bush?”

“It was meant to be a general large object. Won’t the lighting be kind of anticlimactic?”

“The town loves this tree!” Tracy said. “Sure, it’s only as tall as an elementary school student, and there are just a handful of ornaments and a couple strings of lights, but it’s our tree. Ooh, it’s starting!” Tracy focused her attention on the tree.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, bells jingled through the speakers, and Mayor Matt Mayer appeared from behind the curtain that had been set up as a backdrop for the tree. Mayor Mayer took the serpentine route around the stage, pointing and waving at audience members as he made his way to the microphone. He was wearing a holiday vest, as if he opted for keeping his hair’s pristine part intact rather than put a sweater over his head. He was flanked by his newly appointed Mayoral Assistant Todd Samsonite.

“Fun fact,” Tracy said. “Todd is the town’s youngest Mayoral Assistant on record. And he has recently been getting into dj-ing.”

“Welcome and happy Christmas in July to you!” the Mayor announced to Maye and the other fifty-or-so onlookers who were gathered for the tree-lighting ceremony. “This is a very special occasion. Not only has this event grown each and every year we’ve put it on, but, as you can probably tell, I’ve started a new diet.”

“Oh, I’ve read about this,” Tracy said.

“And my entire staff has joined me on this health journey. And isn’t that what it’s all about, anyway? Sharing new adventures with your friends?”

“Get on with it already!” A voice shouted from the crowd.

“Clam it, Melvin!” Mayor Mayer clapped back, looking directly at a specific person. Then he plastered a smile back on his face and continued. “Alright, let’s get this party started.” He shot a glance toward Melvin.

Somewhere between the count from five to three, Maye got caught up in the holiday spirit. The collective anticipation was palpable as the crowd chanted the numbers. And when they successfully counted down and the tree was illuminated, she cheered and sang “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” along with everyone else in the crowd. The swell of emotions was completely unexpected. She felt connected to her community around her, nostalgic even. She could have brushed it off or minimized her reaction, or even just flat-out denied it, but she embraced the moment and acknowledged that a mid-summer downtown tree lighting ceremony had brought her some festive joy. She was pretty good at this grief-processing thing.

“It’s just about time to begin our movie watch-along in the park,” the Mayor announced. “But before we begin, I have a few announcements, if you could bear me the time. As you know, we have the Greenville Fall Festival coming up in a couple of months. Planning is already underway, but we are in need of volunteers to help make the fest a great success!” Mayor Mayer leaned towards Todd and said, “Make the fest a success, that’s good, right?”

Todd nodded intently.

“Thought so,” the Mayor said. “Write that down, Todd.”

“Anywhom,” the Mayor returned his attention to the audience. “Volunteering for our Fall Festival is really rewarding. You know, it reminds me of when I first entered public service…”

Tracy grabbed Maye’s arm. “I just had a great idea, Maye.”

Maye must have been riding on a cloud of euphoria from the tree lighting because she had not yet put together the pieces that Tracy was about to spell out.

“You should volunteer for the Fall Festival!” Tracy said.

“What? No…” Maye barely contested.

“Yes,” Tracy said.

Maye could see that the wheels were already spinning in Tracy’s head and that she didn’t stand much of a chance arguing against it.

“It’s the perfect bridge into the holiday season,” Tracy continued. “Yeah, that’ll do just fine.”

Tracy and Maye followed the crowd as everyone migrated to the park where a giant inflatable screen was set up. The park smelled like freshly popped corn, and a jingly tune played faintly. There were blankets and camping chairs in the spots that people had reserved.

“Shoot,” Maye said. “We don’t have anything to sit on.”