with two glasses of red wine. Presents were crushed and wrapping paper torn. We were confronted with recreating the perfect Christmas morning scene or cleaning up the wine, staking the tree down and calling it a night. “You know” Betsy said, “what we just had was pretty special.” I stared tiredly at her waiting for the punch line. “To have all of us in bed together, that was really a sweet moment.” I nodded in agreement. “You put up the tree, I’ll get the Oxyclean and I will meet you in bed in fifteen.” She kissed my cheek before bouncing off to the laundry room.
I awoke to an empty bed. It was early, barely light out. I assumed Betsy had gotten up before me to feed the baby and tidy up some more. I could not hear any footsteps upstairs running about. I thought it odd, but figured they’d been up late and were still racked out in bed. Nevertheless, I knew I’d be needed in the den so the festivities could begin whenever they did wake up. Betsy met me with a cup of coffee at our bedroom door y Gene and a smile. “Shh” she said, “follow me.” A mother’s III joy was painted across the corners of her face. When I rounded the corner of the den I saw the source of that joy. There on the couch, the children wrapped in blankets and pillows curled up with the dog and the cat. All sound asleep. On the coffee table a note, “dear santa” it read, “we love you.” A father’s joy quickly spread across my face. I hugged my wife “Merry Christmas.” She smiled “ yep, best gifts in the whole world.”
Clement Clarke Moore (1779 - 1863) wrote the poem Twas the night before Christmas also called “A Visit from St. Nicholas” in 1822. It is now the tradition in many American families to read the poem every Christmas Eve. The poem ‘Twas the night before Christmas’ has redefined our image of Christmas and Santa Claus. Prior to the creation of the story of ‘Twas the night before Christmas’ St. Nicholas, the patron saint of children, had never been associated with a sleigh or reindeer! The author of the poem, was a reticent man and it is believed that a family friend, Miss H. Butler, sent a copy of the poem to the New York Sentinel who published the poem. The condition of publication was that the author of Twas the night before Christmas was to remain anonymous. The first publication date was 23rd December 1823 and it was an immediate success. It was not until 1844 that Clement Clarke Moore claimed ownership when the work was included in a book of his poetry.
The Bluffton Breeze December 2013
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