Relatively Minor
Laughter does not have to come from a major source. It could indeed be ... relatively minor.
I had a blast celebrating Independence Day with the masses in Madison County. I hit up the Freedom Fest on the fourth and partied with the locals along Main Street in Patterson on the sixth. Winterset has a fireworks outlet along the highway, sporting a massive gorilla with both arms raised out front. But here’s the kicker: the community doesn’t have an organized display at dusk, so residents make the annual pilgrimage to Earlham for the parade, carnival, homemade pie, and, of course, the fireworks.
If a full day of patriotic explosions didn’t wet your whistle, an evening gathering was planned in the tiny town of Patterson eleven minutes to the east on Saturday. Scattered groups of residents, including kids with large bags, lined the west-to-east parade route. A police siren sounded at 7 p.m. to signal the start.
Smallest parade took place in Patterson, Iowa on July 6. Madisonian photo/Vicki Minor
In years past, the procession down the longest street in town included floats, politicians, horses, classic cars, and boatloads of candy. This year, the Guinness Book of World Records might have considered the festivities to be the smallest on record. If you blinked during the parade you would have missed the seasoned veteran in the back of the VFW pickup preparing to throw candy, the classic pastel pink 1951 Ford, three red tractors, representatives from the United Methodist Church, a girl in a half-human purple dinosaur costume, an inflated unicorn with a dull point and a guy inside, and two children without driver’s licenses steering battery-powered vehicles, a pink Mickey Mouse car and a bright green ATV.
The ceremonious procession in honor of the red, white, and blue took approximately 10 minutes. And although children had to search at the bottom of their bags for candy. They appeared content with their Dum-Dum suckers and wrapped bubble bum.
At the end of the event, my thoughts turned to the fireworks display the town had planned for dark. After experiencing the micro parade, I hoped attendees would see more than one sparkler and a boom.
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