For years I wanted to stay up and eye Santa Claus leaving our gifts, but my best efforts failed, as someone picked me up from the couch and lovingly placed me in the bed with all the thick blankets! I remember all those heavy blankets that kept us warm in a cold house. Sister Glenda usually woke me before dawn and would yell that Santa had been there! Mama promptly entered and started the warm fire, and we drank hot chocolate while shivering, taking in all the gifts. It was all so magical, as the things I wrote Santa to please leave me were there! Fancy that! After a breakfast of hot grits and toast, on this particular morning, mother said our grandparents would be coming and we would have cake and coffee and a surprise. Glenda and I could not imagine what it could be, as we laughed and enjoyed the morning. Soon the knock came on the carport door and my grandparents arrived with a hug and envelope. Glenda said since she was the oldest, she should really open it first... So, the envelope showed a picture of a beautiful bed - antique white. Grandmother said the new bed would arrive in a few days, and so it did. Glenda cried and screamed and mama and daddy were equally excited. I was too young to grasp all this, only that my parents and sister were overjoyed. Our Christmas dinner was fried chicken, with mama's mile-high biscuits and gravy. It was a magical day, and a Christmas I would never forget.
Another Christmas I remember daddy waking us Christmas morning to see the tracks of Santa's sled on the frosty ground. "Wake up, girls" daddy said and we dressed quickly to race out in the cold morning air and see our daddy pointing to the sled marks that traveled across the yard. He was all about fun and every Christmas brought surprises and happy faces. When my sister and I, many years ago, thought about all the happenings on Christmas, it became a time in our lives to never forget. Now I tell my family members of Christmas memories of long ago ,when their granddaddy was out in the cold air trying to catch a glimpse of old Saint Nick... It’s good to relive those moments of the past.
