The directive was pinned to every door. (directive: instruction, order, command) Attendance was compulsory. (compulsory: mandatory, obligatory, required) Cheerfulness was mandatory. (mandatory: compulsory, obligatory, required) An outline on the back described the spontaneous ovation with which citizens would bestow an accolade on the deputy. (spontaneous: unplanned, unprompted, impromptu; bestow: confer, grant, give; accolade: honor, tribute, commendation) They were to greet him by acclamation when he reached the apex of the bridge. (acclamation: acclaim, applause, plaudits; apex: peak, summit, acme) Adherence to the program would demonstrate their affection. (adherence: observance, compliance, fidelity)
The deputy saw no irony until his daughter asked whether she could abstain. (irony: incongruity, inconsistency; abstain: refrain, desist, forbear) Would an abstention demonstrate an absence of affection? (abstention: nonparticipation, abstaining, refraining) Or was his rule a form of coercion? (coercion: compulsion, intimidation, duress) His first inclination was to assert that the rule didn't apply to children. (inclination: tendency, disposition, leaning; assert: affirm, declare, maintain) His second was to actually read it. Its wording was comprehensive and perfectly applicable to his own mother. (comprehensive: thorough, extensive, inclusive; applicable: relevant, pertinent, appropriate)
He sent his staff to retrieve the notices. By then a small crowd had gathered. They had come to watch him carry a ladder up and down his own street. When his mother held the ladder and he took the last notice down, they cheered. Neither of them had to tell the crowd when to start.