"But I wanna see Santa Claus," yelled the young boy.
"I said, let's get in the car and go, it's starting to rain," yelled his father,
as he pushed the boy in the middle of his back, almost causing him to fall
against the car.
"But I wanna see Santa."
"There is no Santa Claus. Get that through your head."
I stood watching the mother look back and forth between her son and her husband.
She didn't say a word as she placed several packages in the trunk of their car.
I opened my truck door and started to climb in when the man floor-boarded his
car causing the tires to spin. The vehicle began to fishtail and flew out of
control. All at once, the car hit a large light pole in the parking lot and came
to a stop.
I was surprised when no one got out of the car. I ran toward the automobile and
when I reached the driver's door I found that it wouldn't open. I immediately
ran to the passenger side and jerked open the door. The woman almost fell out of
the car.
"Can you help us?" She said. I sat her upright and looked over at the father. He
was slumped over the steering wheel, his face a bit bloody. I looked into the
back seat and saw the young boy, just sitting there staring.
"What happened?" I heard coming from a voice behind me. I was surprised when I
turned around and saw, believe it or not, Santa Claus!
"They hit the light pole," I told him.
"I'm Doctor Ashinone."
"OK," I said, in a rather confused tone.
"On my way to do the Santa Claus thing for my grandsons," he continued, shaking
his head in a jovial manner.
The father began to groan. We helped the mother out of the car and walked her to
my truck.
"Should I call an ambulance?" I asked the doctor.
"Just hold on for a moment," he said.
When I returned to the vehicle the young boy was climbing out of the car. I
walked him back to my truck and sat by his mother.
"WHO ARE YOU?" Yelled the father, as the doctor climbed into the car to assist
him.
"I'm Santa Claus, can't you see that?" Said the Doctor, laughing.
The father sat there shaking his head and rubbing his face.
"Should I call an ambulance?" I asked again.
"I don't think that will be necessary. Just a bloody nose," said Santa. "You
might want to have that bump on the head checked out at the Emergency Room," he
told the man.
The doctor climbed out of the car and straightened his Santa suit. "Ho, Ho, Ho,"
he bellowed, as he patted his large belly and waived at the young boy in my
truck. I watched him as he walked to his vehicle and drove away.
The father, holding his head, walked to my truck to retrieve his family.
"I have a cell phone if you want to call someone," I told him.
"No thank you. I'm going to the Emergency Room in a few minutes." He thanked me
and began helping his wife and son out of my truck. He grabbed his son's hand
and the three of them began walking towards the mall.
"Thought you were going to go to the Emergency Room?" I shouted.
"After we see Santa Claus, " he yelled back.
"But Dad, you said there ain't a Santa Claus."
"Son, I know you think I know everything there is to know in the world, but that
is not the case, right here and now."
I smiled, as his wife jumped up and kissed her husband on the cheek.
The three of them disappeared into the mall.
Roger Dean Kiser
trampolineone@earthlink.net
"The Best of Roger Kiser" on two NEW Cds
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