The Buzz Around Wayne County

I would like to extend the warmest of greetings to you faithful followers of The Buzz. As I write this column, Christmas is just a little over a month away. It hardly seems possible. I know that time is measured in the same manner as in my childhood. Yet, the seasons seem to come and go at a faster rate. Oh well, I guess that is just a part of growing older. But, when you stop to think about it, growing old is not such a bad thing. It means that I can write a few more articles, pester a few more people, and I can enjoy my family, friends, and life in general. I am truly blessed beyond words adequate to describe. One of my fondest Christmas memories, as a child, was hearing The Christmas Story read from the Gospel of Luke according to the King James Version each year. One of our church members, Mrs. Evelyn Crawford, would recite the whole narrative from memory. Though Mrs. Evelyn's health no longer permits her to carry out this yearly ritual, it remains firmly embedded in the minds and hearts of all who were so fortunate to have heard her in former years. Mary and her husband Joseph traveled to Bethlehem, at the decree of Caesar Augustus, to participate in a census, in order that all of the world should be taxed. Each individual was required to return to the city of their birth where these taxes had to be paid. As we all know, it was while they were in Bethlehem, that Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ was born. This was an event that brought hope, peace, and joy unto a world that stood in desperate need. Times have changed and the years have 4 The Buzz Around Wayne County December 2017 come and gone, but nothing can match the perfection and the simplicity of the Bethlehem stable. Could it possibly just be that you and I desperately need to make that same trek to Bethlehem this Christmas? All around us, we see and experience a world filled with chaos. Mass murder seems to have become the rule rather than the exception. We are quite possibly standing on the brink of nuclear war. Our elected officials, the media, and the citizens of this great nation are engaged in a seemingly never ending debate over health care, tax reform, immigration, gun control, the placement of historical markers, and a host of other issues. Now you might just be asking, what does all of this have to do with a census taken some two thousand years ago? Perhaps, by retracing the treacherous journey of Mary and Joseph this Christmas, we both individually and collectively as Americans can also take a census as a means of determining just where we are at the present time. Can taking part in such a census be of any harm? I, personally, cannot envision things becoming much worse. Is it just possible that such a census might just help us return to our "SENSES?" There again, I know it is hard to make good sense out of my unorganized, never ending rambling. May the peace of Christ abide with you, and as always, until we next meet, be of good cheer. Advertise in the Buzz Reach Over 40,000 Potential Customers! BUZZ around WAYNE COUNTY Jeanne Brickhouse Jones 919-920-5551 FROM THE PIG PEN RETURN TO BETHLEHEM AND TO OUR SENSES By Gregory Peele 1700 E Ash Street | Goldsboro, NC 919-583-0000 Over 40 Years of Weight Loss Success Merry Christmas & Happy New Year! DELMUS H A R D W A R E Customer Service is Our #1 Goal - SINCE 1960 - LP Gas & tanks • Appliance Parts • Garden Flags Local Honey • Almanacs • Wheat Straw & Hay Kerosene Heaters & Wicks Wood Stoves and Parts, Christmas Candy and so much more! 1049 N Berkeley Blvd. | Goldsboro | 919-778-0440 Hours: M-F 8-6 • S 8-4 10% off of first item Must present coupon to receive discount. We special order for customers! (ROSEWOOD DISTRICT) CALL PHYLLIS TAYLOR 919.222.9549 439 Community Drive Rosewood Community www.shilohfarmministry.org Join us for a great 2017-18 academic year of adventure and reaching full potential. SEPT-JUNE • AGES 5-13 We accept Daily Drop-Ins and Full-Time Students Applications are available Online Open year round for private and public school calendars. Teacher workdays/holidays INDOOR & OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES INCLUDE: Horseback Riding Archery • Petting Farm Sports • Arts & Crafts Bicycles • Train Rides Golf • Ping Pong Foozeball • Pool Table and more! The Arts Council of Wayne County will be hosting a Gala on December 31st at the Terrace Room in Downtown Goldsboro. This formal event will begin at 9:00 PM with entertainment by The Paul Bomar Quartet, a fantastic classical jazz ensemble that performed to a packed house during July's Jazz on John Street Event. Guests will be able to enjoy an assortment of appetizers, beer and wine throughout the evening, as well as a champagne toast at Midnight. Throughout the evening there will be a Silent Auction featuring items from Downtown Businesses and organizations throughout Wayne County. Winning bids will be announced at 11:00 PM. All proceeds will benefit the Arts Council's annual programming. Dance through the decades and ring in the New Year with your friends and family as you help to Celebrate for a Cause! Tickets are $50.00 per person and can be purchased at the Arts Council 102 N. John Street in Goldsboro, or by following the EventBrite link. https:// www.eventbrite.com/e/new-years-eve- gala-tickets-39742574109. For more information contact Wendy Walker wendy@ artsinwayne.org. CELEBRATE FOR A CAUSE

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