A Cowpoke’s Christmas
“Grandpa….tell me about Christmas and Santa Claus!”
The old cowboy stopped rocking and looked down at his little grandson.
“Santy Claus? Christmas?”
“Yessir. We do Christmas cuz of him, don’t we?”
“Little feller….climb up here on my knee and I’ll tell ya all about Christmas.
Now, back in days ago, this here Augustus feller, he was the King of Rome, said he wanted a head count on ever body that was in his herd.
So, this young feller Joe and his wife Mary (she’s a totin’ a little ‘un inside her at the time) packed up and headed out for Galilee…I think that’s out in West Texas somewhere’s, where his great granddaddy Ol’ King David come from, to get counted. Now you needs to know that young Mary weren’t just carryin’ a baby…she’s a carryin’ God’s baby. It was sumpin’ special ol’ God was gonna do fer us folks here on earth. He was gonna come on down and live here fer a bit so’s He & us could get to know each other a tad bit better. That’s the little secret old Joe & Mary had betwixt ‘em.
Well, traveling on an old mule in the dead of winter with a momma-to-be is a slow thing and by the time they got to that dang Galilee place there weren’t no room ‘tall. No sir…nowheres! Well Ol’ Joe finally did beg a stall down to the livery to hole up for a bit an whiles they was awaitin’… ol’ Mary done had that baby. Right there in that barn! Yessir! Jus like a mare a birthin’ a foal! Well, they dint have no fancy baby clothes like they do nowadays so they just wrapped him up in some old burlap bags and laid him down in a feed trough. Kind of a strange place for God to have his kid born, but there ya go…He does things like that now and agin.
Now it was dark o’clock by then and just outside town, up in the hills, was some cowboys keepin’ an eye on a herd a cattle they was driving down to the stock yards in San Antone. All a sudden the whole dang sky lit up bright as day and this feller just came out’n nowhere and jus’ stood in front of ‘em. He was all aglowin’ and had these big ol’ wings…kinda like a eagle and he said he was an angel! Imagine that! You heard of angels afore right? Not one a them sissy, baby girly looking ones…no sir!!! He’s as big as a horse! Scared the dickens outta them hard boys.
Now that fella just looked ‘em in the eye and told them ”Now you boys settle down. Ain’t nothing to be afeared of. I got some good news for ya’ll and ever body. Down in yonder town, a little baby was born who’s gonna save ya’ll from all the evil and bad stuff of this here world.
‘Cowboys….this is a sign to you from God: ya’ll gonna find a little one all wrapped in feed sacks and sleepin’ in a feed trough.’
And then all of a sudden was a whole sky full of them glowing fella’s and they was a singin’:
‘Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace amongst men who He’s mighty pleased with!’
And then, by golly, all them angels just was gone. **Snap** Like that! Them cowboys?? They was dumb founded. They just sat there like a cow poke’ll do, when finally the trail boss says t’others ‘I reckon we best head down and see what all the fuss them fellas was a talkin’ about is.’ So they saddled up and rode hard into the village. And by jingo they saw this big ol’ star a’shining on that stable and headed thatta way. They rode up to just outside and when they went in, sure enough there was Joe and Mary and that baby. And they was all slack jawed and cow eyed, cuz they knew this was sumpin’ special…sumpin’ a man only sees once in his life if’n he’s lucky.
After a bit they saddled up and strolled on back to camp, and told everybody they come across about what happened and what they saw. And everbody was amazed.
And that young ‘un is why we celebrate Christmas….the Baby Jesus…cuz He changed ever thing for the better.”
The boy looked up at Grandpa threw his arms around that old man’s neck and gave him a big old hug. He climbed off Grandpa’s lap then turned and asked… “So….when did Santa come along?”
Oh well….
Merry Christmas Everyone!!
Bp
