The Epiphany is a religious holiday which traditionally falls between 6th and 9th January in Switzerland. It is a Christian Feast that celebrates the revelation of God the Son as a Human Being (Jesus Christ). In the Germanic part of Switzerland, it is most often called “Drei Königs Tag” (Three Kings day) as it was to three kings (Magi) to whom Christ was first revealed. The observation had its origins in the Eastern Christian Churches and was a general observation of the manifestation of the incarnation of Jesus Christ. It included the commemoration of his birth, the visit of the Magi to Bethlehem and all of Jesus’ childhood events including his baptism.
Alice, Danielle and Maud were not aware that today was the Epiphany. It was a normal Sunday morning. The three ladies first met one another through their membership of the Vevey Dog Club and became close friends. Alice had only one dog, Sunny, a “Berger des Pyrenées”. He was over 16 years old and was going deaf. Maud had a 14 year old Border Collie, Scotty, who was of very calm disposition and an Australian Sheppard, Miro, who was a great friend of TS’s and the youngest of the lot. Danielle also had two dogs, an odd pair; Bruno, a Bruno du Jura and TS, a Briard, the leader of the pack. Bruno loved running with Miro in the open fields.
They planned to meet by the “big tree” in la “Pleine de Rhône” which was convenient and usually had space where they could park to unload the dogs. Most walks they undertook were of a duration of about an hour through open fields and along foot paths overlooking the river. “La Rhône” river started up above Brig in the Valais, and after passing through the Lake of Geneva, took a sharp turn southwards through France to exit at Marseille into the Mediterranean Sea.
They took their time, the sun was out and they wanted to take advantage of the lovely warm weather. Therefore, when they saw Brönimann’s Garden Center coming up on the right side of the road, they decided to make a stop to get some “poinsettias” in various colors. Maud always had red ones, Alice liked the white ones and Danielle insisted upon the pink ones as they matched her living-room furniture. However, after approximately 10 minutes underway, a deer suddenly crossed their path and disappeared into the forest. The whole pack of dogs, except Sunny who couldn’t run anymore, were off on the chase. Some frantic whistling and calling on the part of the ladies brought TS and Scotty back. These two were the best trained. They were shortly followed by Miro and even Bruno, the Hunter.
Getting closer to home, they stopped at a café to take a break and were shown to a table with a view of the lake. The café was known for its baked goods and pastries as well. All were made in house and served with “Café Renversé” (Café au Lait). The waitress pointed out that today, being the Epiphany, there would be no charge to the food, only the coffee. It was common in Switzerland, that for the Epiphany, such cafés would place at random a small plastic crown into the bread items, representing the Magi and permitting the lucky finder to rule as king or queen of the day. This ritual was very popular, but not known to the general public and could become dangerous. Before anyone could say anything, Maud was slouched over the table and was choking. The owner came running over and applied the Heimlich Method, expediting the foreign body. As soon as Maud was able to leave, the ladies left.
