It was the night before Christmas and Santa was getting things ready before he would have to leave . He was in the office checking the list on his desk with the names of the good kids and the bad kids . As he started to think about the good kids who did their best under extreme hardship it made him also consider the bad kids who made it difficult for everyone else but deep down he knew that there was always some goodness in their heart and that is one of the reasons why Santa made a provision on the list for the naughty kids to become good kids .
As he sat there he checked the list twice and then put it away safely for future reference . Then he put on his boots and as he did he thought about the kids who might not have any shoes so he got up and went out the door and walked over to the Santa’s shoe storeroom and selected some extra shoes to place into the sleigh . One by one Santa placed the shoe boxes into the sleigh . It started to snow and he started to feel very cold so he had to return into the house to put on an overcoat and as he did he thought about kids who might not have any warm clothes so he made his way over to Santa’s clothes warehouse and selected some warm clothes and placed those into the sleigh . It was very dark and all the stars in the sky twinkled bright and that made him think about kids who were blind and could not see the stars so he made his way to the library and packed some talking books and CDs about the universe because he knew how valuable they would be for blind children .
Santa was getting a little bit hungry so he went back inside his house and warmed up some milk in a saucepan and took some cookies from the pantry . As he sat down to eat and drink he thought about kids who might have no food or anything to drink so he made his way to Santa’s sweet shop and grabbed some selection boxes and bags of lollies which he placed into the sleigh .
It was getting late and Santa saw his reindeers were all running around playing .
Then he went into the house and got them some carrots . When he went back outside he called the reindeers , who all came racing over to Santa who gave each of them a carrot . They all loved Santa and one by one they stared to lick his face which made Santa laugh and as he did he thought about kids who might have never had a pet of their own so he made his way to the small animal farm where he selected a number of bunny rabbits , guinea pigs , puppies and kittens and placed then into the sleigh .
It was only a few hours to go now before Christmas . He went into his office and sat down at his desk and made some notes . Last minute thoughts about some kids who were in need of something special so he went to his treasure chest and scooped up some Christmas magic and placed that into a small sack that he put over his shoulder and carried that out to the sleigh . One by one he harnessed the reindeers to the sleigh the he went back to turn off the lights inside the house as he did he thought about kids who might not have a home or a bed to sleep in and so he he went over to the outdoor living warehouse and selected a number of tents and sleeping bags and placed those into the sleigh . As he started to laugh he knew it was time to go and he climbed into the sleigh and rang the jingle bells and shouted Ho Ho Ho away we go and the reindeers flew high into the sky and it was almost now Christmas day and he knew exactly what he had to do and how to do it .
Wouldn't it be wonderful if Santa could supply every child with what they need for Christmas, and a little of what they want? You might note, as odd as it seems, the plural of deer (more than one deer) is deer, therefore the plural of reindeer is reindeer.
Santa was thinking good thoughts… and most of all, acting on them. Make sure that you change "… packed some taking [talking] books…" So that your intention won't be misinterpreted. A good story for the season.
In my grade school years we lived in northern industrial city in the changing bad part of town. It was easy to identify good kids from bad kids by their families and their behavior. Our grade school had about 30% good kids and about 70% bad kids. So clear in those days. Simple playground logic.
Bishnupriya Ghosh, Professor at University of Santa Barbara contacted me asking to use my painting of Mother Teresa in her upcoming book, "Global Icons" which was published by Duke University Press Books. You may see Judy Jones's painting of Mother T
