Christmas Cuties

   Crissy looked intently at the Christmas cards she'd set up. Roger was just getting the tree in the right place. Although the size of their house didn't allow for a very large tree, they both felt they had found one which was absolutely perfect. Not only was it short enough to fit the room like a glove once the star was in place, but it was nice and full with even sides. Really, it would be hard to find a better tree than this. Seeing it fully decorated was going to be a treat.

   "Okay," Roger grinned, "we can start trimming it now."

   "C'mere for a second." Crissy was looking even more intently at her Christmas cards. Roger stepped over and placed his hands on her shoulders. 

   "What's cooking?" He kissed the top of her head. She smiled and looked at him before pointing to the cards.

   "Take a look at these cards and tell me what you see." Roger studied the cards for a moment before looking back to Crissy.

   "Depictions of our Savior's birth?"

   "Look at this one," Crissy held up a card showing a woodland cabin nestled in the snow, "it reminds me how warm it is around here. Not very Christmasy at all."

   "It's not where you spend Christmas that makes it what it is."

   "Oh, I know that, it's just after listening to White Christmas on the radio again, I think Bing might have a point."

   "You want snow for Christmas?"

   "Well, not really, but Christmas lasts for twelve days and I'm thinking it might be fun to spend a couple of them in someplace like is on this card here."

   Roger could only think back to the Christmas he spent in Europe in '44. The still, cold night sky, twinkling stars, and snow-covered countryside were indeed picturesque, but he was hardly in the best place to enjoy it. His unit was positioned on a hillside where it was impossible to build a fire for warmth, lest it draw enemy fire. Born to the humidity of Creek Bend, that winter overseas was one of the most miserable times of Roger's life. It was only by the grace of God that Rog hadn't lost his toes. Still, if Crissy wanted a traditional Christmas, he'd see that she got it. Surely the snow and ice would be much easier to endure if they were being viewed from the other side of a picture window.

   "Only a couple of days, right?"

   "I can't imagine wanting any more than that. I'm too used to the Creek Bend climate."

   "I think one of the men on my board has a cabin we could rent from him for a couple of days. I'll make the arrangements if it's what you really want."

   Creek Bend may not have seen snowfall but once every sixty years or so, but the town did Christmas up big. Main street was decked with lights and decorations fit for the largest of cities. Gay apparel was donned as well, though sweaters were scarce as they would not have survived the normal actions of a farming community blessed with constant warmth. Still, the shirts the men wore suddenly took on a rainbow of colors in difference to the standard white shirts which marked most of the year. The business men in town favored cardigan sweaters, but they popped in Technicolor hues that gave the town the look of a picture postcard. The only thing they didn't have was snow, but that really didn't bother anyone aside from the kids. They had been taken into account, however.

    The town square included a large park area where many years ago had been the customary bandstand which came to life during Summer picnics. Misty Carter arranged with the town leaders to truck in mounds of snow to be spread over the park so the local kids could frolic in it before it had a chance to melt away. The sight of all those kids running around and building snowmen and throwing snowballs, all while clad in short sleeves, was one of the highlights of the Christmas season here. 

    The studio did it's part, too. In addition to decorating the place, they also put on a show for the locals every Christmas. Here was the perfect mixture of small-town sensibility and Hollywood glamor, as the stars would give their time to entertain anyone who stopped by with songs, dances, dramatic readings, comedy routines, whatever they enjoyed doing most. The show was free, the studio's Christmas present to the town. 

   The building of the studio in the first place was handled very carefully, as it was important to the Boss that the town's natural rustic beauty not be disturbed. He didn't want to destroy the very thing that drew him here, after all. The land at the far end of town was purchased and all expansion went away from the town itself, sound stages and production buildings and back lots eventually taking up an area twice the size of the town itself! The main gate was right at the end of the main street, though nestled behind a row of trees which kept the studio walls from being an eyesore. The presence of the studio did demand additional housing for studio employees and stars. A side street of suburban homes sprang up, partly paid for by the studio for it's use as yet another location for filming. That, too, expanded away from the center of town, creating a unique situation where the outskirts of the town were the more developed areas. Suburban homes stretched back and up the hillside where more ornate homes were built. Down near the main street, though, was the modest home shared by the Baxter sisters.

   Beverly cooed as she pulled an ornament from a box and held it up next to the tree.

   "Look, Jeannie, it's the ornament I made when I was eight." Beverly smiled to herself. "I was such an adorable child." Sitting on the other side of the tree, Jeannie smiled and shook her head as she sucked on a candy cane.

   "Where did I put that box of tinsel?" Jeannie looked intently.

   "Do us a favor, sister dear, and don't eat all the candy canes this year. Only two made it onto the tree last year."

   "Yes," Jeannie sat back up with a grin, "and you ate those."

   "Hmmf." Beverly grabbed another ornament.

   "Are Davy and his mother coming here, or are we going there?"

   "I thought about that. I think it's best we go there for our party. I want Davy to think of his house as a happy place."

   "That makes sense. I think you've been a real help to him."

   "I wish I could do more." Beverly dangled another ornament in front of herself, this one depicting a happy family sitting around a cozy fireplace. It was a stark reminder of how this Christmas was going to be the first Davy would have to spend without his father. "I can't imagine what he's going through."

   "It helps him to know he's loved," Jeannie offered, "I'm sure that makes the whole situation easier to bear."

   "I've been so focused on Davy that I haven't considered how hard this must be for his mom. I can imagine what it'd be like to lose a father, but losing a husband... She must be going through a rough time of it."

   "I think she's helped, too, if Davy's spirits are lifted. At least she doesn't have to worry about him as well as herself. That must make things a little easier on her."

   "Yeah. After what she had with Warren, I don't know if she's even entertained the idea of marrying again. It might be the best thing for her to do for Davy's sake, eventually. A boy needs a father."

   "I don't know how soon she'd let herself think about it, but she's got a leg up. She's still young, and very pretty. But I imagine it'll be a long time before she can even look at another man without thinking of Warren."

   Beverly dug a little bell out of her box. It was a very special ornament, the first ornament Mr. Baxter had given to the girls. It's gentle ringing was to always remind them of the special bond they have as sisters, as family. He made a point to see the girls had this particular ornament when they moved out on their own. It would be a reminder of their old home. Beverly placed the bell on the tree and let it sway so as to sound that comforting ring.

   Roger and Crissy figured it best to spend the couple of days before Christmas at the cabin so they could return to Creek Bend for the usual festivities once Christmas actually began. They didn't want to miss Minerva's much anticipated bash, for instance. They already had their first great Christmas memory by trimming the tree together. It was a simple thing, but it was exactly the sort of warm remembrance they knew they would look back on with fondness. This stay at the cabin was sure to be another such memory. Both began having second thoughts as they  stepped off the train and felt a gust of cold wind, however. Crissy in particular was chilled as the breeze shot up her skirt. She momentarily stopped in her tracks, displaying a look of extreme discomfort. 

   Roger stood by. He'd largely forgotten what the extreme cold felt like. He regretted wearing his usual thin socks, as his ankles were cold now. Crissy looked up at Roger, wanting to tell him she'd changed her mind but also not wanting to for all the effort he'd gone to in arranging this trip. Another blast of cold air, which again found it's way up Crissy's skirt, made the decision a bit easier to make. Crissy pointed to a snowbank which had been swept off of the platform.

   "There, I've seen my snow. Let's go home!" To Crissy's surprise, Roger didn't offer a second's protest as he gathered up their bags and turned back to the door of the train.

   "Okay."

   "Wait." Crissy tugged at Roger's sleeve and turned him back. "I'm being a baby. The cabin will be nice and warm."

   "Well, it will be in a couple of hours, I imagine. We'll have to start a fire when we get there, so when we first walk in it'll probably be about like this."

   "I feel silly after all you've done to make this happen."

   "Don't feel silly," Roger smiled, "not every idea is going to be a winner, you know. Right now, I can't think of a more inviting prospect than to cuddle up with you under a big blanket as we ride the train back home."

   "You're sure? We're already out the cost of the train tickets. If we turn back now, we've made the trip for nothing."

   "Not really, we got to go on a train ride together."

   "We've done that lot's of times."

   "Yes, but this trip we can just watch the scenery pass by the windows. You still get to see your winter wonderland, it's just on the move." Roger leaned in closer and kissed his wife. "I can live with that if you can." Crissy smiled lovingly. Another blast of cold wind up her skirt was enough to cause a yelp and she pushed Roger toward the train.

   "Sounds good to me! Hopefully, my little cotton tail will be thawed by the time we reach home!"

   Minerva Mallen did Christmas up big, even moreso than her studio did. Her house was the scene of an annual get-together to which everyone was invited. During the course of the day before Christmas, nearly everyone in town seemed to pass through the Mallen house. Farmers rubbed shoulders with directors and actors, munching on Minerva's house specialty. Pizza wasn't traditional Christmas food, but Minerva loved to make it and the townsfolk certainly enjoyed it. On the way to the house, they would all stop to drink in the details of Minerva's life-size nativity scene on the front lawn. It was another one of the highlights of the Christmas season in Creek Bend.

   Minerva pulled another pizza out of her oven before shoving a new one in it's place. Wendy was at her side, helping the operation run as smoothly as possible. Wendy glanced out the window.

   "One of your wise men fell over, Minnie."

   "Again? He's been unsteady on his feet all day. I'd better go out there and fix it. Keep an eye on that next pizza." Minerva wondered how to make the figure more stable as she shifted the wise man around. She thought about placing some stones at his base to help, and knelt down to brush some of the straw aside. The only good-sized stone in evidence was the manger itself, an actual relic she'd picked up on a trip to Israel a few years back. She rested on her knees as she took a look at the figure placed in the manger, thinking about the meaning of the season.

   "I wonder...," Minerva spoke to the figure of the Christ child, "were you aware of who you were and why you were born, as you lay there in that manger? Did you know you were to die in our place, to give us yours?" She smiled and closed her eyes as she took a deep breath, then continued her search for a rock or two she could use to stabilize her wise man. While she was doing so, the figure in question again toppled over and landed square on Minnie's head.

   Minnie pushed the wise man aside and sat up, rubbing her head. She was just going to have to attach a spike to the figure so it could be planted in place. As she pushed it back into a standing position, she found she was suddenly bathed in light from above. What she saw when she looked up was completely unexpected. Suspended over the lawn was a big sleigh, and standing in it was a plump man dressed as Santa Claus.

   "Merry Christmas, Minerva!" The man called out and followed up with a hearty laugh.

   "Merry Christmas. You certainly go all-out, don't you?" Minerva noticed that the sleigh lacked any means of support. It wasn't being held up with wires or anything, nor was it perched on any sort of platform. "What goes on here?" The sleigh lowered to the ground, the man inside remaining perfectly in place. Minerva's eyes bugged. "How'd you do that?!"

   "I've had a lot of practice. I'm Santa Claus, you know."

   "Oh, come now! You don't even have any flying reindeer."

   "Actually, I do. Come look." Kringle reached over and opened a compartment in roughly the same place as one would find a glove box. Minerva stepped over and gasped as she saw inside the compartment stood a circle of reindeer, each about two inches tall!

   "I know those eight reindeer are described as being tiny, but this is ridiculous!"

   "They don't actually fly, but they give off energy that powers my sleigh to make IT fly."

   "You can't be on the level!"

   "Why not? With everything that Santa Claus does, I should think this would be the easiest part to accept."

   "I guess you have a point there." Minerva leaned in and took a good look at the reindeer. It wasn't a trick. The compartment housed a grouping of miniature reindeer. Minerva stood up straight and rubbed her eyes, then took another look at the sleigh and it's pilot. "Then you... No, it can't be."

   "There are more things in Heaven and Earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy."

   "Granted, but... Okay, for the sake of argument, let's say you really are Santa Claus. What are you doing here?"

   "Each year, I like to find someone to make my rounds with me, as a present to them. Look around you, Minerva. You have the Christmas Spirit in abundance. I want you to ride with me this year."

   "Really? You want ME to help you deliver your presents?"

   "It's an honor few receive, and you can't tell anyone about it when it's over. The whole point of giving is that it isn't something you do for gain or recognition."

   "Just how long has this been going on?"

   "For a while now. I had to stop during the War as it was too dangerous, but I've been taking passengers along since then. Danny Thomas rode with me last year."

   "Really?"

   "Red Skelton the year before that."

   "You like to work with actors, don't you?"

   "Sometimes. Those who have the child-like joy of the season. That's why I've picked you this year. Climb aboard!"

   "I dunno..." Minerva placed a hand on the sleigh. "Are you sure this thing is safe?"

   "Of course! I've been doing this since 1923."

   "1923?"

   "The position of Santa Claus is a mantel that gets passed from man to man. A German fellow was the previous Santa Claus. He figured an American would be a good replacement after our showing in The Great War."

   "You were a soldier?"

   "None value peace so much as the warrior." Santa held out his hand. "Come aboard." Minerva hesitated, but there was something about this guy that prompted trust. Minerva took his hand and climbed into the sleigh. Santa took his seat and raised a lever which caused the craft to rise into the air. Minerva was agog as she looked over the side. Santa chuckled and turned the sleigh. Minerva looked back to see the infamous bag of toys, then she looked over at Santa.

   "You have stuff in there for millions of kids all over the world?"

   "Actually, my rounds aren't quite as extensive as one has been told. Oh, I still go all over the world, but I only deliver a few gifts to needy children. Parents buy most of the gifts that get given to their children. Santa Claus only tends to special cases. For example..." Santa stepped up the power and within the blink of an eye the sleigh was across town. Minerva had to reorient herself, but she recognized the house over which the sleigh now hovered.

   "I know that house. It's the Crenshaw home."

   "Yes. And it's a home that needs a Christmas miracle. You may have heard that Mr. Crenshaw lost his job not long ago."

   "Yes. I saw him at the party this evening, though. He looked like he was holding up well."

   "He's been putting on a brave front, but the truth is he's on hard times. He made a point to take his family to your party because the pizza you served was their meal for this day."

   "I had no idea. Why didn't he say anything?"

   "Pride. Some men find it difficult to accept charity, particularly those who survived the Depression. Men like Mr. Crenshaw feel that if they can't work a problem out on their own, they don't have value as men."

   "I guess I understand that, but there's no shame in accepting help if you need it."

   "The key being if one needs it. Men like Joe Crenshaw feel they shouldn't need it, lest they become the sort who take from their neighbors even when they don't have to. He's really thinking of his fellow man. Yes, he's being stubborn, but he's doing what he thinks is right. He has to set an example for his son."

   "Hard to fault him there."

   "His heart is in the right place, but he needs to understand that charity is as much a help to the person giving as it is to the person receiving. He just needs a little help to push him through the year. He's going to get a better job in January, and he'll be fine. He needs a little help right now, though, even if he doesn't know it." Santa reached for his bag and produced a gift basket of food, a toy gun for Billy Crenshaw, and a doll for Cindy Crenshaw. Then he pulled from his pocket a small gun that looked like something from a Space Patrol premium. 

   "Is that another toy?"

   "Watch this." Santa smiled as he turned the gun on the gifts and pressed the trigger. The items were enveloped in transparent bubbles. Minerva bugged her eyes, and somehow managed to bug them even more when the bubbles and the items within began to shrink until all three bubbles could fit inside Santa's fist. He flung the bubbles at the house, where they seemed to take on a life of their own and flew down into the chimney. Santa lowered the sleigh so Minerva could look inside the window and see the bubbles emerge from the fireplace and circle the tree. Santa adjusted a dial on the gun and the bubbles returned to their original size before setting down and vanishing, leaving behind the gifts which sat perfectly under the tree.

   "How?" Minerva couldn't say anything else.

   "It's Christmas. Who do you think I work for?"

   "Wow." Minerva fell back into the passenger seat. Joe was going to be shocked the next day, but not as shocked as Minerva was right now. Santa raised the sleigh again and headed for their next destination.

   Wendy patted Minerva's face, rousing her friend from unconsciousness. Minerva was groggy, but she looked around and rubbed her head. Seeing Wendy, Minerva asked what happened.

   "You were tackled by your wise man. Are you okay?"

   "Yeah, I think so. I'd better secure that thing before I go back inside. Why did they make it so top-heavy in the first place?" Minerva didn't think much about her dream beyond jotting down a few notes which could be used to make a cartoon out of it. She might not have thought about it any more than that, had she not run into Mrs. Crenshaw a couple of days later. Minerva was awestruck as she was told about the presents that had been discovered under the tree on Christmas morning. The food basket, the gun, the doll, all as she had dreamed it. But there was something else. Mrs. Crenshaw was shopping today because Joe had found some cash tucked into his jacket pocket. Minerva was at a loss to explain this, or any of it, really, but Christmas truly is the season of miracles. Why complicate it?

   At the Ralphwit home, the unexpected bounty delivered to the Crenshaws was also the topic of discussion. Roger and Crissy were curled up on the couch, having exchanged that day's presents. They were doing it the traditional way, exchanging a new gift to each other over the twelve days of Christmas.

   "Very odd feeling," Roger mused, "breaking into someone's house in the middle of the night to leave them some things to help them out."

   "Yeah," Crissy sighed as she rested her head on Roger's chest and listened to his heartbeat, "playing Santa Claus in a literal fashion probably isn't something we should make a tradition of, but I'm glad we did what we did for the Crenshaws."

   "I am too, at least I was once we were finished. While we were actually in Joe's house, I kept thinking about him hearing us in the living room and coming after us with his hunting rifle!"

   "I think we got away with it. Minerva saw me carrying the gifts by her window, but I doubt she took inventory. Even if she does piece together that we were behind it, I'm sure she won't say anything."

   "No, she's a good egg. It's a good thing you ran into Cindy while we were at Minerva's. If she hadn't told you what was going on, we never would have known."

   "I didn't want to pry, but she let slip how Minnie's pizza was going to be her whole Christmas. I figured Joe would bounce right back after the plant closed."

   "He will. I've already got a new job for him in the works. He should be hired on the second or third, well before his groceries run out."

   "You're a good man, Rog." Crissy smiled as she snuggled deeper into his side. His steady heartbeat soothed her, increasing her comfort. In a moment, she nodded off and began sleeping so soundly that Roger dared not move. He closed his eyes and nodded off too. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS 

FROM THE 

      CARTOON CUTIES!