WISE WOMAN WITH A MIRROR * COMMUNITY FOLK SING, OTHER EVENTS * BY THE NUMBERS * Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter * Vol. 13 * Nov. 23, 2012

Here's a holiday story to start off the Newsletter. I first read this story several years ago for a holiday event hosted by the original Wild Bill's Coffeeshop. I plan to read it next Wednesday for Spoken Word at Uptown Bill's ~ Tom G.

WISE WOMAN 

WITH A MIRROR

MARY Rose was old enough to doubt Santa that year. But she was still young

enough to believe in the magic of Christmas.

So when she opened the front door and saw the Christmas tree, it seemed

perfectly natural. She didn't ask where the tree came from or why it was 

there. She simply announced: "Dad, the tree is here."

I was the one with all the questions. What tree? What is it doing outside 

our door? We didn't order any tree? Who left it here?

When I didn't reply, Mary Rose spoke up again. "The tree is here, Dad. I 

think I'm going to need your help bringing it in."

So I went to help her. We never did find out who left that tree for us.

There was a card with it, but it wasn't signed. And none of our neighbors 

had seen anyone leaving the tree at our door.

AS WE hauled the tree into the living room, I could tell this wasn't going 

to be any ordinary Christmas. But I had no idea what lay ahead.

Besides being a bit of a skeptic about Santa, Mary Rose was already 

outspoken. She had started politely confronting people with fur coats. And

she suggested to parents who tethered their children that such leases

belonged only on pets.

At school, she sought a meeting with the principal to discuss why one wing 

of the school was locked and the children kept inside. "They are kids, 

too," she told him. "Open the door so they can come out and we can go in."

She was also growing into a fine young feminist. Once, when I had mixed up 

the main characters in the Song of Hiawatha, she assured me that wasn't 

such a bad thing. In the original story, it is the young man Hiawatha who

carries the young woman Minnehaha across the creek. But in a column I 

wrote, it appeared that Minnehaha had carried Hiawatha. "That's okay, 

Dad," Mary Rose said. "Minehaha was a pretty strong woman. I'm sure she

could have carried Hiawatha across the creek." 

Mary Rose brought this same mixture of awe and sensibility to the Nativity 

pageant at our church. This was an annual affair which brought all kinds of

children into a recreation of the story of Jesus' birth. 

The easiest part was finding someone to play Mary. For some reason, there 

always seemed to be plenty of little girls who wanted to play that part.

The hardest part was always Joseph. There must have been a shortage of 

little boys during those years. Finding a Joseph was always like looking 

for a lost contact lens on a gymnasium floor. There seemed to be little

hope.

AND EVEN when you found a Joseph, bizarre things could happen. Just the 

year before, Joseph had abandoned his post at Mary's side and run out of 

the church. It turned out that he had been batted one too many times

by the wings of an angel and just left.

In between these two central roles, there were the animals, shepherds and 

wise men. There were always enough children to play these parts, but there 

was a lot of negotiation over the details..

For example, there will plenty of little cruisers who wanted to play

animals, many getting a second chance to wear their Halloween suits. Or 

pajamas which looked like pig or bear costumes. 

But I wasn't prepared for the mother who asked if her son could wear his

Ninja turtle suit. "I don't think there were any Ninjas at Bethlehem that 

year," I told her.

"He's willing to compromise," she replied. "I've talked with him and he 

said he'd skip wearing the shell if he could be in the pageant."

Shepherds weren't that difficult to find either. But they never seemed to 

be able to keep their beards on. And they couldn't control their sheep -- 

the smallest children -- who were always wandering off.

AND THE wise men? Well, this was going to be the year. "I want to be one 

of the wise guys," Mary Rose announced.

"I think all three were men," I responded. 

"How do you know," Mary Rose responded. "One of them could have been a

girl," she replied. "Besides you don't have enough boys." 

She had a point there, I thought. I asked her what she knew about the wise

men. "Well, each one of them brought a gift to Jesus. One brought gold,

another brought Frankenstein and one brought a mirror." 

I laughed and tried to give Mary Rose a little more information about the

gifts. But she wasn't listening. Her skeptical side had already framed a

question: "Dad, why would that one wise guy bring the Baby Jesus a 

Frankenstein. That doesn't sound very nice."

I tried to explain that it wasn't a Frankenstein that he brought, but I

didn't get very far. Mary Rose had moved on. "So are you going to let me 

be one. Can I be the wise woman with the mirror."

"Okay," I said, "but you'll have to wear a beard."

"That's great," Mary Rose replied. "Then afterwards, I can shave it off 

like you do yours."

So that Christmas, we had a Nativity pageant with all the usual

people, plus a Ninja turtle without his shell. And when it came to the

final scene, Jesus was visited by two wise guys -- and a wise woman with a 

mirror.

WHAT'S HAPPENING
AT UPTOWN BILL'S
Saturday, Nov. 24
3 pm. Grasp Support Group
7 pm. Saturday Night Music with Jeffrey Capps

Tuesday, Nov. 27
6 pm. Live TV broadcast of Tom's Guitar Show. Presented in cooperation with PATV.

Wednesday, Nov. 28
1-4 pm. Chess & Scrabble group
3 pm. Recovery International support group7 pm. Spoken Word. Ten minute slices of poetry and other writings. Open to all ages and abilities. Sign up at the coffeehouse. Co-sponsored by Little Village magazine.

Thursday, Nov. 29
6 pm. Artvaark (art activities0
7 pm. Open Mic. Ten minute performances of music and other arts. Open to all ages and abilities. Sign up at the coffee house.

Saturday, Dec. 1
4:30 pm. Irish Sessions
7 pm. Saturday Night Music: Dave Moore

Wednesday, Dec. 5
1-4 pm. Chess and Scrabble Group
3 pm. Recovery International support group.
7 pm. Spoken Word. Co-sponsored by Little Village magazine. Ten minute slices of poetry and other writings. Open to all ages and abilities. Sign up at the coffee house.

Thursday, Dec. 6
6 pm. Artvaark (Art activities)
7 pm. Open Mic. Ten minute performances of music and other arts. Open to all ages and abilities. Sign up at the coffee house.
8 pm. Music with Erin Ebnet

Saturday, Dec. 8
1-3 pm. Community Folk Sing.
3 pm. Grasp support group
7 pm. Saturday Night Music with The Gilded Bats

EXTEND THE DREAM
BY THE NUMBERS
Extend the Dream is the non-profit parent for Uptown Bill's, the Vintage Shoppe and other enterprises. Here is some information about the impact of the organization during 2012:

130 volunteers participating in the various enterprises

160 Abilities Awareness posters displayed around town

340 support group meetings (AA, Grasp, others)

284 people reading poetry at Spoken Word Events

376 people performing at Open Mic Nights

872 people receiving the Bill's Newsletter (published since 2000)

1,260 people attending concerts and performances

BILL SACKTER CENTENNIAL

COMING NEXT APRIL

April 13, 2013 marks the 100th birthday of Bill Sackter, whose life and spirit inspires Bill's Coffeeshops and a host of other enterprises in Iowa City and other communities. Wild Bill's and Uptown Bill's are collaborating on a centennial celebration for this occasion. Events include showing of "A Friend Indeed: The Bill Sackter Story" on Friday, April 12 and an all day birthday party on Saturday, April 13. For updates, "like" the Bill Sackter Centennial page on Facebook.

HOLIDAY OPEN HOUSE

AT VINTAGE SHOPPE

Be sure to visit the Vintage Shoppe during its annual Holiday Open House. The dates are Thursday and Friday, Nov.29 & 30 and Saturday, Dec. 1. 10 am to 5 pm. Vintage is another project of the Extend the Dream Foundation. Located at 2203 F. Street, the store has a wide array of antiques and collectibles. For information, call 338-4466. Or visit The Vintage Shoppe on Facebook.

LOOKING BACK IN THE
BILL'S NEWSLETTER
A look at topics from the Newsletter in past years:
Twelve years ago (2000): Dave Ray, a blues musician from Minneapolis, plays this week at Wild Bill's Coffeeshop.
Eleven years ago (2001): Graduate students in social work have organized a holiday toy drive. Donations can be dropped off in the coffeeshop.
Ten years ago (2002): Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Mother Jones and Elizabeth Gurley Flynn have been added to the collection of "Social Work Heroes on a Stick" available in the coffeeshop.

________________________________

Bill's Coffeeshop Newsletter is a virtual extension of Wild Bill's Coffeeshop and Uptown Bill's Coffee House. Published since 2000, the Newsletter is written by Tom Gilsenan, a former manager of Wild Bill's and now director of Uptown Bill's. You can write to him at tomgilsenan@gmail.com

Wild Bill's Coffeeshop is a project of the School of Social Work at the University of Iowa. It has been a part of campus life in Iowa City for more than 35 years. Located in North Hall, the coffeeshop is open weekdays from 8 am. For more information, check the Friends of Bill's Coffeeshop page on Facebook. You can call the coffeeshop at (319) 335-1281. Donations to support the work of the coffeeshop may be sent to: Bill's Coffeeshop Fund, University of Iowa Foundation, P.O. Box 4550, Iowa City, IA 52244. Contributions are tax deductible.

Uptown Bill's is the crosstown cousin of Wild Bill's. Now in its 12th year, it includes a bookstore, performance venue and other businesses in addition to a coffeeshop. Located at 730 S. Dubuque, Uptown Bill's is open Monday through Saturday from 10 am. For more information, check the Uptown Bill's website or Facebook page. You can call Uptown Bill's at (319) 339-0804. Donations to support the work of Uptown Bill's may be sent to: Extend the Dream Foundation, Uptown Bill's, 730 S. Dubuque St., Iowa City, IA 52240. Contributions are tax deductible. You can also donate online at the Uptown Bill's website: www.uptownbills.org