Our apartment on Flushing Avenue in Brooklyn was very small. Our bedroom was adjacent to the living room. It had no door, only a heavy curtain. On this particular Christmas eve, somewhere around 10:30 at night, I kept hearing banging and metal pieces clanging. I called Mom to see what the fuss was. I told her I heard what sounded like my brother Ruben, a cousin…“Shh, Santa needs some help,” she said. WOW! Could you believe that? After much more clanging and voices of my dad and a cousin or two, my brother and I were allowed to see what was going on. “Santa” had delivered my all-metal blue jeep pedal-car with a bright yellow star in the middle of the hood! I was allowed to try it out back and forth in the tiny living room. Soon afterwards, we were snoring again anxiously awaiting Christmas morning. When it arrived, it wasn’t a dream! Everything that had happened was real. Along with many other gifts, my jeep was parked there under our tree!
Many Christmases ago, in a manger, laid baby Jesus. No gifts were there other than One for the whole world: The King of the universe! Other than His parents, His only visitors were shepherds that, while out in the fields keeping watch over their lambs, like me, heard fussing and noises that night. Suddenly, they beheld the glorious angelic announcement of His birth from an angelic chorus worshipping the new King in song and praise! With excitement, the shepherds headed to the manger near the inn to behold the tiny king who was born to save the world. It wasn’t a dream! He was there as real as the angels said! They headed out to tell everyone what they had witnessed (Luke 2:8-20)! It was a marvelous first Christmas!
Merry Christmas!
Sam