“What are you reading after the election?” a friend asked me last week. She asked me because she had picked a book specifically for the occasion. She was reading “Democracy in America.”

“De Tocqueville?”

“Yes,” she said. “When I had to read it for school it was boring. It’s not boring now.” 

Featuring professional classical dances and the Ballet Conservatory of Asheville’s celebrated pre-professional company, a magically festive, full-length stage version of “The Nutcracker” will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6, and 3 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 7, in the Bardo Arts Center Performance Hall at Western Carolina University. 

The North Carolina State Extension Master Gardeners are hosting a wreath-making workshop Dec. 7. The extension will provide a selection of fresh greenery, natural embellishments and knowledgeable volunteers to show people the ropes.

As the temperature drops in Western North Carolina, the fun only heats up. The holiday season here is filled with events and activities aimed to celebrate the best way we know how — with friends, family and visitors alike. 

As fall is slowly transitioning to winter, so, too, comes the holiday cheer. And although Thanksgiving Day, the official kickoff of the Christmas season, is still a week away, there are a handful of events already in motion to get the ball rolling. 

•  “The Merry Buccaneers Holiday Heist” stage production will be held at 6 p.m. Nov. 22-23 at the Swain Arts Center in Bryson City. All ages. Admission is $5. greatsmokies.com/events. 

In recognition of the exceptional public service provided by a trio of radio stations during Hurricane Helene — when nearly all other communication infrastructure had failed — the Town of Canton has named them grand marshals for the annual downtown Christmas parade.

The 15th annual “Handmade Holiday Sale” will be held from noon to 7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 21, in the Bardo Arts Center at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. 

Started in 1992 by Morrill Worcester with the donation and placement of 5,000 wreaths at Arlington National Cemetery during the Christmas season, Wreaths Across America has grown to state and national cemeteries holding ceremonies of their own across the country to “remember, honor and teach” about our veterans — remembering not their deaths, but their lives in service to our country. 

Most people don’t contribute to the world over a lifetime what Charlotte Joy Norris did in just two short years.