The Night Before Christmas — Filly Style!

JEFFREY KOTERBA’S ARTWORK USED WITH PERMISSION

 VISIT HIS WEBSITE: http://www.jeffreykoterba.com

‘Twas the night before Christmas in this Junction of ours;  

The sky over the prairie was ablaze with bright stars;

Our boots were lined up by the fire with care,

In hopes that Old Santa Claus soon would be there;

Felicia’s ornery mule napped snug there in the barn,

Whilst our visiting guest was spinning a yarn;

O’course Winnie in her wool socks and Tanya in her cap,

Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap,

When out in the corral there arose such a ruckus,

I sprang from bed to see what the heck was…

…outside the window, there on the barn roof,

Victoria banged open the shutters and near busted a tooth!

The moon was so bright it near blinded my eye

And the snow landed like whippin’ cream coverin’ a pie,

When, what to my hornswaggled eyes should appear,

But a covered wagon and eight dusty reindeer!

With a little old driver wearing boots and a hat,

I knew for durned sure he was related to Pat.

He was cheery and bright, a right jolly cowpoke,

Elizabeth laughed when I saw him; he was my kind of  folk.

Those reindeers, they ain’t docile. What a hissy they threw!

Nearly toppled the wagon, and Old Santa Claus too.

Quicker’n a youngin’ off to play hookie,

That old geezer came in and asked Linda for a cookie;

Tracy found one and he ate it, so Stacey got milk

Then Karen, she presented him with a scarf made of silk.

But Mary, she hung back, I think she was a’feared

‘Cause all night she trembled and her eyes how they teared

No worry, Margaret told her, the fat guy’s a friend.

To us in the Junction and those ’round the bend,

Sure ’nuff Santa left a package in each Fillies’ boot,

Didn’t matter none to him, they was dusted with soot.

Then somethin’ happened, caught us all by surprise,

Donna and Cheryl S showed up with an armload of pies.

We sat down to eat ‘em, and they tasted fine,

Though they couldn’t have baked ‘em; They hadn’t had time;

Old Santa asked for seconds; Bet that’s why he’s merry.

 He tried pumpkin and apple, even pe-can and cherry.

Phyliss heaped on whipped cream, and still he ate more.

His belly how it swelled! Would he fit out the door?

“It’s my big night,” he declared.  “Only comes once a year.”

  Good thing for that, too, or he’d burst I do fear.

He stifled a burp, and a pipe out it came;

“Smoking’s not good for you,” Cheryl P did loudly exclaim.

“All that sugar and now this, think of your health.

“Think of all the children that count of your jolly old self!”

He listened real close and even nodded his head,

Took right to his heart everything we had said.

He tossed that old pipe in the fire with a pop,

“The Missus, she’s been tryin’ to get me to stop,”

With a hearty laugh and a promise to come back.

The Fillies watched that old fella leap up the smokestack.

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a yee-haw,

And away they all flew, like twister-flung straw.

And we heard him exclaim as that team took flight,

“Merry Christmas, you bloggers, and to all a good-night.”