The Home Board

When I was about 14 years old,Dad got caught in a cornpicker. It could have been a lot worse as it was he only lost his little finger on his left hand. I had helped in the milk barn enough by this time that I was able to take care of the milking by myself. Had lots of help with barn clean up,feeding but the milking was mine to do. Well I had been pestering dad to let me buy a new single shot 22 but he said no. Now that Dad was laid up it was pretty much out of the picture for now. Well Christmas Eve was here and Mom and Dad needed me to help smuggle Santa Clause stuff into to the garage. Well now I am feeling all grown up and my thoughts that Santa isn't real were confirmed. Well Christmas morning comes around and Dad was getting around a little better and was able to stay with me all through milking and it seemed to go pretty good and he said let's go wake the kids up and open
Christmas. Well now being the big grown up man I was at the time I was really excited. It was time for the younger ones to see what Santa had left in the garage, after all the truth is out about Santa but I was excited to help keep the big secret. when things had settled down a little bit. Dad told me we must have left something in the garage. I knew we had it all in the house but went to check any way. What I found was a New semi auto 22 rifle that was three times the one I wanted. And I know beyond a shadow of doubt that Santa Clause had left it there, because I carried everything in the day before and it was not there when I helped the younger ones with their stuff. Mom had this funny grin on her face and said now "Mister smarty britches you didn't know as much as you thought you did did you." That was the year I learned the truth Santa is real.

When I learned the truth

I was much younger probably about two or three years old. My mother had me standing on the keyboard cover of her upright piano and she was dressing me. One of my very earliest memories. I had asked her a question about Santa Claus but I don't remember what the question was, undoubtedly it was something about Christmas. She said she was gonna tell me because she thought I was too young to remember it.
She said Santa Claus was really daddy and there wasn't gonna be any Christmas because daddy was in jail for non-support and that we would be lucky to have something to eat for Christmas. I really don't understand why or how that small piece of my history stuck with me all these years.
Well it really did turn out to be a pretty good Christmas because of a group of people in Muskegon Michigan that were retirees of the Muskegon chronicle newspaper that would give Christmas to families like the one I was raised in. What I remember of that Christmas was the fruit, the apples and oranges, and I really don't remember any presents. My sister, later in life, told me that there were presents but for some reason all I remember is the fresh fruit.
A lot of people here in the Philippines don't believe that story because they believe every American is rich at birth. Also I don't remember any kind of birthday celebration until after I became an adult. So at that very young age I learned that Santa Claus was really a drunk.

I had this bossy, know it all aunt. My mothers younger sister. The families cooked up that I would go spend a week with them about the first of December. I think I was 4. Well she took it upon herself to tell me the "facts", and made a big deal out of making me announce to my parents, when they come to pick me up, that I knew there was not Santa. She acted all smug that she had taken this opportunity to educate me on something that was not her business. Well I didn't like her much before, and I really didn't like her ever after.


Gene

Reminds me of two young boys talking after Sunday School, one asked the other do you really believe what
sister sue said about the devil. The other boys says nah it is probably like santa it is just your dad.

A devil dressed up in a Santa Claus suit.
Sounds just like my father.