Tuesday, December 15, 2015

Twas the night before Christmas & out on the ranch


'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 rewrite was kind of cute so I thought I would share it.  Couldn't find the author. 
The Gene Autry version below, with explanation.
During the story portion of the December 22, 1946 Gene Autry Melody Ranch Christmas Party broadcast, Gene recites the Christmas poem "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" to comfort little Susan whose mother is very ill. And as this is Gene's telling of the classic poem, it has a Western flavor to it. 

8 comments:

  1. Youth and enthusiasm once again outdone by old age and trickery.

    Seems all so reasonable.

    Merry Christmas, nonetheless!

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  2. we have Gene Autry singing A Very Texas Christmas to you all over the airwaves here.

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    Replies
    1. Cool. I will check YOUtube for more of his recordings

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  3. Love it! Grandpas are very wise... and very devious. ;-)

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  4. Might have to try this. If only we could make the cell phones go dead.

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  5. A time without cellphones and television was a more peaceful time - but today it would seem like another dimension.
    the Ol'Buzzard

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  6. This would only work if the neighbours were far enough away you could not see their lights. Tanya's cell phone goes dead in about 6 hours. No idea what apps she has running on it all the time. Yes, it would be hard to revert to a world without TV or cell phones or computers. Imagine reading an encyclopedia to learn something instead of just Googling it.

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