It was the evening of December 24, 1966. Christmas Eve. And it was snowing. Really hard. They called it a blizzard. It was the last time we had a truly white Christmas in these parts. You can look it up.
There was a six year old boy who spent most of the night either with his hands and face pressed against the window beside his top bunk bed anxiously hoping to see Santa and his sleigh flying through the wildly swirling snow flakes and running to the bedroom of his Mom and Dad with one concern after another.
His concern began a few days earlier when he realized that his home did not have a fireplace or a chimney. This fact did not usually present him with much of a problem, but all of a sudden it became very problematic two days before Christmas. Without a fireplace, without a chimney, how on earth was Santa going to get into the house and put all those wonderful toys under the Christmas tree? He asked his father about this and good dad that he was, he had just the right answer. His father explained that on Christmas
he would leave the above ground outside basement door unlocked so that Santa could come in through the basement and right up the stairs to the living room where the tree was located. The little boy was greatly relieved. He even thought that Santa would like this method much better than trying to squeeze up and down a dirty old chimney. His
Dad had showed him earlier in the day on Christmas Eve that he had in fact unlocked the basement door which, was about at a thirty degree angle from the ground to the house and closed. He explained that Santa would know that it was unlocked from previous years. Everything seemed to be in place. Soon it was time for him and his five brothers and sisters to go to bed.
But, it was snowing. And it was Christmas Eve. And Santa was coming! And everyone else was soon asleep. And this little fellow from his window by his bed could see that basement door! He thought sure that if he could only stay awake; he would see Santa and the reindeer and be able to actually watch him come into. Sleep for him was not something that was going to happen any time soon. Or for his Mom and Dad either, for that matter.
Then it occurred to him. The basement door was unlocked. Any body could get into the house. Robbers could get in. They could steal the toys. His toys! That was the occasion of his first trip to his parents’ room. His mother calmed his fears very quickly. She explained that it was snowing too hard. It was would be too difficult for anyone to get around that night. There was no need to worry about robbers that night. It made good sense to the young man. He went back to his room, climbed to his top bunk and re-pressed his face to the window pane.
He was peaceful for a while. It was snowing too hard for robbers. They could never get around in that kind of weather. No one could. But soon it occurred to him that it might be too hard for Santa and his reindeer to fly in this kind of weather as well. What if Santa could not make it this year? Every one had been saying that they could not remember a storm like this around here, especially on Christmas Eve. It was now time for his second trip to see Mom and Dad.
Again, Mom was able to bring him some peace. She told him that Santa was used to weather like that. It was always snowing really hard at the North Pole. In fact he probably liked it better that way. That seemed to make sense to him, so back he went to the window pane.
He was sure that Santa would be there soon. But as he looked down at that basement door, he became filled with worry again. The snow was piling up very quickly on top of the door. He could barely even see it He thought that if Santa did not get there soon he would not be able to open it up because it would be too heavy. Somebody had to do something. Fast.
He ran back again to his Mom and Dad. They assured him that everything would be alright, if he would just go to sleep. They sent him back to his room.
This time he went back to his post on his top bunk in a very concerned state of mind. But he kept his nose pressed to the glass and, before too long, he saw something that he would never forget. No, it was not Santa Claus. It was not a sleigh. It was not reindeer that he saw. What he did see was his father who had donned his winter gear and was now shoveling the snow off of that basement door so that Santa could get in. His dad looked up at him and waved. Then he opened the door so that his son could see that everything was going to in order for Santa’s arrival.
The next thing I remember is that it was Christmas morning and I was under the tree with all of my brothers and sisters surrounded by Christmas presents. But I don’t remember anything that Santa brought me that night. And if the truth be told, I would be hard pressed to give an accounting of any gift that Santa ever brought me over the years. I do, however, very much remember the gift that my Mom and Dad gave me that night. (I kind of think that my Mom might have suggested to my Dad that he clear the snow off that basement door.)
To me, this story is as simple as it gets and it is transcendent; it is not limited by time or space. As we make our final preparations for Christmas, let’s make sure that we give our loved ones true gifts. Gifts that they will always remember. Gifts that truly show how much we care. Remember, it is your loving and caring present that is the most wonderful present. Merry Christmas to all!!
~Father Maloney