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Santa Comes Early by Brenda Hughes

In our family there were nine of us kids and we all vied with one another for attention, yet we watched out for and protected each other too. One Christmas, Santa came to visit, but it was not how or when we expected him! It was an early afternoon shortly before Christmas. My mother was working and wasn't home, and it was left to my older brother and sister to watch over the rest of us. It was chaos! We were having a ball running and jumping and chasing each other all over the house, knocking things over, yelling and screaming--our older brother's and sister's efforts to maintain discipline falling on deaf ears!

Suddenly there was a loud knocking at the door, stopping us in our tracks. My older sister peeked out the window and hissed, "Oh, my gosh! You guys! It's him! It's Santa!"

"Santa? What do you mean, Santa?" we chorused. "Santa's not supposed to come yet!"

"Shhh!," she said, "I know! And this place is a mess! Quick, go get things picked up. I'll see what I can do to stall him!"

With that, we all took off running, picking up pillows, straightening rugs, trying our best to make things look good.

My sister creaked open the door. "S-Santa?" she said, "What are you doing here?"

"Ho, ho, ho," he said, "As a special request, I've come early to deliver this basket of goodies to you for Christmas! Where are all the children? I've heard they've been especially good this year and want to tell them so!"

My sister looked back at us and we slowly grouped around her, looking as guilty as pie.

Santa looked us all over and said, "What have you all been up to?"

"N-Nothing," we replied.

"Well, I only count eight of you. Aren't there supposed to be nine?"

We looked around. Who was missing?

Then my older brother spoke up. "Uh, our little brother is hiding in the clothes dryer. He's supposed to be in bed and I was so scared when I saw you, I hid him in there! I'm sorry!"

"Ho, ho, ho!" That's O.K. young man," Santa said, "but go and get him now. He should be all dried out by now!"

Looking back, I smile, remembering those fun-filled, snow-packed Christmas holidays, days spent ice skating on the magically transformed high school baseball field, of pulling on knitted scarves and mittens and chunky boots, of trudging through knee deep snow to make big fat snowmen and snow angels, shivering with the cold and wet, warming up with lumpy hot chocolate.

No longer a child, my own children are now grown up, and for the first time ever we find ourselves living in a place other than Michigan. And, while the place we live in now has been welcoming, it's just not the same...it never could be.

Christmastime in Michigan... warm memories, joy, and magic! It's where I learned Santa is not only real, he can come early too!

Posted/updated Dec 12, 2005
by Andrew McFarlane (Absolute Michigan)