JoAnnHoffman Posted December 13, 2009 Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 Twas the night before Christmas & out on the ranch The pond was froze over & so was the branch. The snow was piled up belly-deep to a mule. The kids were all home on vacation from school, And happier young folks you never did see- Just all sprawled around a-watchin' TV. Then suddenly, some time around 8 o'clock, There came a surprise that gave them a shock! The power went off, the TV went dead! When Grandpa came in from out in the shed With an armload of wood, the house was all dark. "Just what I expected," they heard him remark. "Them power line wires must be down from the snow. Seems sorter like times on the ranch long ago." "I'll hunt up some candles," said Mom. "With their light, And the fireplace, I reckon we'll make out all right." The teen-agers all seemed enveloped in gloom. Then Grandpa came back from a trip to his room, Uncased his old fiddle & started to play That old Christmas song about bells on a sleigh. Mom started to sing, & 1st thing they knew Both Pop & the kids were all singing it, too. They sang Christmas carols, they sang "Holy Night," Their eyes all a-shine in the ruddy firelight. They played some charades Mom recalled from her youth, And Pop read a passage from God's Book of Truth. They stayed up till midnight-and, would you believe, The youngsters agreed 'twas a fine Christmas Eve. Grandpa rose early, some time before dawn; And when the kids wakened, the power was on. "The power company sure got the line repaired quick," Said Grandpa - & no one suspected his trick. Last night, for the sake of some old-fashioned fun, He had pulled the main switch - the old Son-of-a-Gun! This is the type evening that should be spent by everyone!! The public will believe anything, so long as it is not founded on truth. - Edith Sitwell Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meg Posted December 13, 2009 Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeAnn Posted December 13, 2009 Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 Thanks JoAnn. How right you are! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stagecl Posted December 13, 2009 Report Share Posted December 13, 2009 :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathG Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 Loved this JoAnn. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lindasewsit Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 love it! thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 I agree, thanks for sharing the truth. Corey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 very cute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sewlinzi Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 Aww... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smorris Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 I wonder if this would work here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gator Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 :cool::cool::cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RitaR Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 These new or different things about holidays are wonderful when they aren't all dirty.. This brings back memories though we had no fireplace, nor mule.. melting snow for water, live stock and a coop full of chicks to guard from freezing and keep them watered and fed.. check tiny toes for bleeding and put that purple gunk on them, milk the cow, slop the hogs, separate the milk and take a quart to the neighbor, and play in the snow. Mother would cook syrup until it was thicker than usual and we'd pour it over snow and when it hardened, eat it.. play checkers, Black Magic, color, make cowboy towns from figures on the backs of a cereal, I think cheerios, but am not sure at all. It was just fun.. when we wore on Mother too much, she'd let us go out sledding, always worrying about us getting hurt. We always piled the sled into the snow bank when a car appeared on the road. I couldn't stand the thought of our red blood on the pretty white snow. lol.. Thanks for sharing it was fun to read... RitaR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angie UK Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 Lovely.......... Angie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonnie Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 This sounds like something my dad would have done....but then the big county yard light would have given him away....so he would have had to figure out how to turn that off as well.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
quiltmonkey Posted December 14, 2009 Report Share Posted December 14, 2009 You just made my day, JoAnn. I love this. THANK YOU! :) I will share this with my uncle Bob Petermann (he's a cowboy poet) in Wibaux, MT and my mom who lives in Miles City, Montana where she was born, raised on a cattle ranch. They will surely appreciate this, I just know it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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