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Mattrf
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I Believe In Santa!
« on: Dec 12th, 2006, 10:47am » |
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I Believe In Santa!
I remember my first Christmas adventure with Grandma. I was just a kid. I remember tearing across town on my bike to visit her on the day my big sister dropped the bomb: "There is no Santa Claus," she jeered.
Even dummies know that!"
My Grandma was not the gushy kind, never had been.
I fled to her that day because I knew she would tell me the truth. I knew Grandma always told the truth, and I knew that the truth always went down a whole lot easier when swallowed with one of her "world-famous" cinnamon buns. I knew they were world-famous, because Grandma said so. It had to be true.
Grandma was home, and the buns were still warm.
Between bites, I told her everything. She was ready for me. "No Santa Claus?" she snorted...."Ridiculous!
Don't you believe it. That rumor has been going around for years, and it makes me mad, plain mad!! Now, put on your coat, and let's go." "Go where Grandma?" I hadn't even finished with my second cinnamon bun yet. "Where" turned out to be Kirby’s General Store, the one store in town that had a little bit of just about everything. As we walked through its doors, Grandma handed me ten dollars.
That was a bundle in those days. "Take this money," she said, "and buy something for someone who needs it. I'll wait for you in the car."
Then she turned and walked out of Kirby’s. I was only eight years old. I'd often gone shopping with my mother, but never had I shopped for anything all by myself.
The store seemed big and crowded, full of people scrambling to finish their Christmas shopping. For a few moments I just stood there, confused, clutching that ten-dollar bill, wondering what to buy, and who on earth to buy it for. I thought of every-body I knew: my family, my friends, my neighbors, the kids at school, the people who went to my church.
I was just about thought out, when I suddenly thought of Bobby Decker. He was a kid with bad breath and messy hair, and he sat right behind me in Mrs. Pollock's grade-two class.
Bobby Decker didn't have a coat. I knew that because he never went out to recess during the winter. His mother always wrote a note, telling the teacher that he had a cough, but all we kids knew that Bobby Decker didn't have a cough; he didn't have a good coat. I fingered the ten-dollar bill with growing excitement. I would buy Bobby a coat!
I settled on a red corduroy one that had a hood to it. It looked real warm, and he would like that. "Is this a Christmas present for someone?" the lady behind the counter asked kindly, as I laid my ten dollars down. "Yes, ma'am," I replied shyly. "It's for Bobby."
The nice lady smiled at me, as I told her about how Bobby really needed a good winter coat. I didn't get any change, but she put the coat in a bag, smiled again, and wished me a merry Christmas.
That evening, Grandma helped me wrap the coat (a little tag fell out of the coat, and Grandma tucked it in her Bible) in Christmas paper and ribbons and wrote, "To Bobby, From Santa Claus" on it. Grandma drove to Bobby Decker's house, explaining as we went that I was now and forever officially, one of Santa's helpers.
Grandma parked down the street from Bobby's house, and she and I crept noiselessly and hid in the bushes by his front walk. Then Grandma gave me a nudge. "All right, Santa Claus," she whispered, "get going." I took a deep breath, dashed for his front door, threw the present down on his step, pounded his door and flew back to the safety of the bushes and Grandma.
Together we waited breathlessly in the darkness for the front door to open. Finally it did, and there stood Bobby. Fifty years haven't dimmed the thrill of those moments spent shivering, beside my Grandma, in Bobby Decker's bushes.
That night, I realized that those awful rumors about Santa Claus were just what Grandma said they were: ridiculous. Santa was alive and well, and we were on his team. I still have the Bible, with the coat tag tucked inside: $19.95.
May you always have LOVE to share, HEALTH to spare and
FRIENDS that care... And may you always believe in the magic of Santa Claus!
Happy Holidays to you and yours!
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Yorky
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #1 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 11:11am » |
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loved the story matt
did bobby go to school in the winter then ?
happy crimbo all.
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today is a gift.....thats why it is called the
present.
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Brew
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #2 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 11:14am » |
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In our house you BETTER believe in Santa Claus. If you profess to the world that you don't, he doesn't come to leave you goodies (action = consequences).
It's a very pragmatic system.
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sandie99
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #3 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 2:45pm » |
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Great story, Matt! 
Happy Holdays to all!
Sanna
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"Do what you can and let God take care of the rest. Leave your heart wide open and always wish for the best" (Sanna Hillu)
"No matter how far out your dreams are, it's possible" (Marketa Irglova)
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BarbaraD
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #4 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 2:51pm » |
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I love that story.... I'll tell it to Caleb. He's done the angel tree the past couple of years, but I don't think he knows exactly why he's doing it.
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roy21302
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #5 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 3:12pm » |
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I liked the story, thanks for sharing. happy Holidays to you and yours
cheers Roy 
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Charlie
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #6 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 6:23pm » |
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What a great Christmas story Matt.
Charlie
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LeLimey
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #7 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 6:35pm » |
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I loved the story, thanks Matt 
I'll just keep trying to be the next chapter in the story
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BarbaraD
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Re: I Believe In Santa!
« Reply #8 on: Dec 12th, 2006, 7:30pm » |
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Caleb loved the story and wants to see if Bobby needs a "new" jacket.... He was serious...
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What don't kill ya, Makes ya stonger!
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