THE GREAT FAIR

Saturday, February 25, 2006

Indian fry bread with beans and cheese and a cold diet coke. Wow! The sun was shining brightly (about 72 degrees) but in the shade it was delightful. We sat eating our lunch and listening to the wonderful music of Brulé. Brulé is a Native American band that plays contemporary music. They are good---very good.

After eating, listening to the music and resting, we made our way around the last half of the Great Fair. The Great Fair is held every February in the town of Fountain Hills. I think it started in 1975. Today there are 500 artists and crafts people that come from all over the United States. About 160,000 people attend the three day event. Fountain Hills also has what they call an Arts and Crafts Fair every November. It has about the same number of crafts people and about 150,000 in attendance.

Fountain Hills is known all over the world for its great fountain. I don’t remember how high the water shoots into the air but they say (The Chamber of Commerce) it goes higher than any other fountain. I have seen the fountain many times but I am always pleased to see it again. A few years ago I performed a wedding ceremony across from the fountain and timed the ceremony so the bride and groom would be saying their vows when the fountain was shooting into the air. It was the bride’s idea, not mine.

Yesterday was one of those, all too few, days when we just moved slowly through the crowd, enjoying the people, the day, and each other.

You need to try it---you will like it!