THE CHRISTMAS SANTA ALMOST FORGOT Once there was a little girl who was five years old. She lived on a horse ranch with her momma and daddy, a lot of cats and a dog or two. She had a Shetland pony named Ricky she spent a lot of time with. Ricky had already raised several families of kids before he came to live at her house. He was getting up in years, and like most Shetlands, had gotten pretty cantankerous. She would walk out in the paddock most every day with her jump rope, put it around his neck, and lead him back to the stable. Invariably, Ricky would gaze nonchalantly off in the distance, pick up a front hoof and place it squarely on the little girl’s toe. He did it every time. After Ricky ran away with her one Sunday while she was out riding with her momma and daddy and dumped her in the bushes, it was decided that she needed a new mount. Rebel, a palomino, was located. He’d been ignored and stuck in a filthy stall way out in the back of a riding stable in the city. He stood close to 15 hands tall, and that’s a long way up for a little girl, but Rebel wouldn’t have lived much longer where he was. The old guy with his muzzle gone gray looked to be near starvation. The owner of the stable was just waiting for the day he could call the rendering company to come get the horse’s body. He must have thought there wasn’t much reason to waste good oats or hay on an old horse past his prime and no longer able to earn his keep taking riders out. The stable owner was thrilled to get $100 for Rebel rather than have to pay to have his remains hauled away. The old gelding had been afflicted with several different types of lameness, but those flaws were completely overlooked by his new owner when he backed out of the trailer at his new home. The little girl’s eyes only saw a gorgeous golden palomino with a flowing flaxen mane, the most beautiful horse in the world. We called the vet and the farrier, and Rebel’s reincarnation began. Dr. Banker said “I can’t be sure how old he is, but I’d say, give or take, about 20 years older than God.” Be that as it may, that little girl saw to it that Rebel had the best brushed belly and legs of any horse on the
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ranch. Rebel got the same treatment as the fancy show horses that stood in the stalls around him, and he began to regain his health with good feed, hay and a lot of love from one little girl. Every day she rode him, and he took wonderful care of her, never once putting her in any danger. He seemed to know what precious cargo he carried. Christmas drew near; the weather was frosty, and decorations twinkled all over the ranch. What an exciting time of the year! As the family stood back and admired their decorating skills, Rebel’s mistress pointed out that the horses needed stockings hung on their stalls so that Santa could bring them apples and carrots. Naturally, Rebel had the biggest, fanciest stocking of all. A few days before Christmas, not long after dinner as bedtime was being discussed, the front doorbell rang. Momma and Daddy pretended to be too busy to answer the door so they sent their little daughter. They heard the front door open and then quickly slam shut. They asked who was at the door. Their little one said, with saucer-sized eyes, “It’s Santa Claus.” “Well, Sweetheart, go back and invite him in.” Her momma said. She returned to the door, peeked out and ever-so-slowly opened the door. And in walked Santa Claus in full uniform, with a hearty “Ho, Ho, Ho.” The little girl (who had not found a period since she spoke her first words) was totally tongue-tied. Eventually she crawled up on Santa’s lap, sat silently and stiffly observed him. After a few minutes of questioning by Santa Claus, she asked him where his reindeer were. Santa explained that they were resting for their big night on Christmas Eve, so he hadn’t come by sleigh. She finally began to tell him all the things she wanted for Christmas. A short while later, Santa said goodbye and with a “Ho, Ho, Ho,” was on his way. The little girl was very puzzled and not a little disappointed that Santa drove a car and hadn’t brought his reindeer. She had really wanted to meet Rudolph. On Christmas Eve, the young equestrian was almost too excited to go to bed. When her parents finally got her tucked in, her last words before her eyes slowly closed, were about Rebel. “Momma and Daddy, are you sure Santa Claus will remember Rebel?” she said. “I forgot to ask him. He doesn’t know that Rebel lives here now and not in the same place as last Christmas.”
