There are many great Christmas stories. Some contain sadness, others emote just the sure joy of the season.
The best of all Christmas stories has a wonderful ending but contains some paths in getting to that wonderful resolution at the end.
I call this one “A sad boy’s reward”.
It is no secret in my family that my father drank way too much. Around Christmas he was prone to go on a toot most anytime. What made that especially bad was that his drinking disposition was horrible, filled with bad things happening to his family. Hollering, swearing, stumbling and falling into the Christmas tree, it had all happened at my house around Christmas.
So, it became my job when I was around 8 to go with dad when he did his work on Christmas Eve in order to get him home at least sort of sober. Christmas Eve was my most difficult time because not only did the Shanty, the Elks Club and the HI Line Club entice Dad, but on Christmas Eve the basement of the Lou Lucke Company was filled with happy people drinking whisky, washing it down with a Dago Red wine.
Dad took the last delivery out from his dry cleaning department with me at his side. After the delivery he said he was going to stop at the Elks and would just have one beer. That he did but then came the very bad news. He told me as we were leaving the Elks that he wanted to check at the store for any late deliveries. I knew that was a lie. He wanted some whiskey and that Dago Red in the basement. I figured I had just lost the battle.
I stayed in the delivery truck parked in front of the store. I am sure I was a very sad looking little boy with tears in my eyes. Along came some old vagrant looking man, spotted me in the truck, came over and told me to roll down the window. He handed me a twenty dollar bill and told me to cheer up and have a happy Christmas.
That was a huge amount of money. More than I had had in one place ever and it was all mine. I don’t remember getting Dad home that night. I must have and it must not have been too bad or I would have remembered that.
But that money from that old man. All these years later, I will never forget the happy Christmas that brought to a sad little boy in a delivery truck in front of the Lou Lucke Company in Havre, Montana!
