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A VISIT FROM SAINT NICHOLAS
by Clement Clarke Moore

’T was the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that Saint Nicholas soon would be there.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,

While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And mamma in her ’kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap;

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,

I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be Saint Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,

And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name:
“Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!”

As dry leaves that before the wild hurricane fly,

When they meet with an obstacle, mount to the sky,
So up to the house-top the coursers they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys, and Saint Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof

The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney Saint Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,

And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot.
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

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His eyes — how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow.

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,

And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath.
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed, like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,

And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself.
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread.

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

And filled all the stockings; then turned with a jerk,
And laying his finger aside of his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney he rose.

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good-night!”

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“A Visit from St. Nicholas” has been a part of Christmas in America since 1823,
the year it was published. Clement C. Moore wrote it for his family on Christmas
Eve, 1822.
Do you believe in Santa Claus or Father Christmas? The surprising thing is that
they are not the same person, but very few people remember that these days.
The original Santa Claus was St. Nicholas. He was bishop of Myra, a town on the
south coast of Turkey, during the fourth century. St. Nicholas loved young
children. There are several stories of how St. Nicholas rescued children and
young people from different dangerous situations. Dutch Protestants who went
to live in New Amsterdam (New York) took the legend of St. Nicholas with them.
In Dutch, he is called Sinter or San Klaas. North Americans loved the idea of the
kind saint who gave children toys at Christmas-time. They renamed him Santa
Claus.
Father Christmas is completely English. He first appeared in the Middle Ages in
Christmas plays performed by the local working people. Father Christmas, as he
was called, was initially modelled on Odin, the father of the Norse gods, who
rode over the world on his eight-toed horse, Sleipnir, during the winter
festivities, and checked that everybody was happy. Odin had a long beard and
fur-trimmed cloak. The Father Christmas costume has really not changed very
much from then to the present day. Father Christmas did not bring English
children toys until the days of Queen Victoria. In 1860, a picture of Father
Christmas appeared on a Christmas card distributing presents to the children for
the very first time. The idea was popular. Children loved it, of course, And so,
Father Christmas started to bring toys on the night of 24 December for children
to find when they woke up on the morning of 25 December.

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Exercise 1

Indicate whether (a) (b) (c) or (d) best completes the following sentences.

1. A lot of people nowadays

(a) remember that Santa Claus and Father Christmas are not the same
person
(b) do not realize that Santa Claus and Father Christmas are the same
person
(c) call Santa Claus by his original name, St. Nicholas
(d) do not realize that Santa Claus and Father Christmas are not the same
person

2. St. Nicholas
(a) lived in Turkey sixteen hundred years ago
(b) used to dress up as Santa Claus, because he loved children
(c) was a great teacher who lived in Turkey in the fourth century
(d) went to live in New Amsterdam with the Dutch Protestants

3. The name Santa Claus

(a) was the name of the kind saint in Turkish
(b) was created by North Americans, who took the Dutch name as a model
(c) is the name given to Old Father Christmas by the English
(d) is Dutch

4. Father Christmas
(a) was originally an English saint
(b) was originally a character in an English play in the Middle Ages
(c) is Odin, the father of Norse gods
(d) rides Sleipnir, his eight-toed horse, on 24 December, when he takes
presents to all the children

5. The first Father Christmas to distribute presents to children

(a) was in the days immediately before Queen Victoria
(b) was in the U.S.A.
(c) appeared on the morning of 25 December
(d) was on a Christmas card in 1860

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Exercise 2

Answer the following questions in complete sentences

(a) When and where did Father Christmas first appear?
(b) Who was Father Christmas initially modelled on?
(c) What did Odin look like and what clothes did he wear?
(d) What appeared in 1860?
(e) Who was the idea of especially popular with?
(f) So what did Father Christmas start to bring English children?

Exercise 3

Christmas is too commercial

Tell why you think it is too commercial and what things you see that make it
seem commercial. What could be done to make it less commercial? Elaborate,
expand, think of EVERYTHING you can say,

Exercise 4

Christmas traditions I value

Tell what Christmas traditions of your family are picture to you.

Exercise 5

A memorable holiday
Tell of a Christmas you will never forget because some special incident
happened.

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Exercise 6

Write a Christmas poem in which each line begins with one of the letters of
“Merry Christmas”. The lines may rhyme, but they don’t have to.

M
E
R
R
Y

C
H
R
I
S
T
M
A
S

Read your poem in the group

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Exercise 7

Find the hidden message!

After you checked off all the words in the list, the remaining letters in the
diagram will spell out the hidden word or words.
Word list:
1. Berries 10. Garlands 20. Merrymaker 30. Spruce
2. Boughs 11. Gifts 21. Midnight 31. Stars
3. Candles 12. Glass 22. Music 32. Toast
4. Cards 13. Glitters 23. Ornaments 33. Toys
5. Champagne 14. Greets 24. Parties 34. Trees
6. Dances 15. Holy days 25. Presents 35. Visits
7. Decorate 16. Horns 26. Services 36. Wines
8. Festive 17. Icicles 27. Shout 37. Wreath
9. Foods 18. Kiss 28. Sings
H H G L A S S S R E T T I L G
B O F E S T I V E A P R I A T 19. Lights
E S L D E C O R A T E G R O C 29. Snow
R H S Y W O N S P K H L Y H M
R G T C D S Y H A T A S A H I
I U F A I A P M S N T M O C D
E O I N E P Y R D E P R I O N
S B G D L R A S E A N C I E I
C S D L R V W R G S L A S C G
I H Y E I G G N T E E R R U H
S O M S C T E S S I K N A R T
U U I A O E E W I N E S T P T
M T R A I T R E E S N S S S G
S D S E R V I C E S E C N A D
S T N E M A N R O S F O O D S

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 The Gift
One dollar and eighty-seven cents. Three times Della counted it. One
dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas.
Della had been saving every penny she could for moths. Twenty dollars a
week doesn’t go very far. Expenses had been greater than calculated. They
always are. Now she had only $ 1.87 to buy a present for Jim. Her Jim. And what
could she do with such a small amount of money?
Suddenly she turned to the mirror. Her eyes were shining brilliantly, but
her face had lost its colour”. Rapidly she pulled down her hair and let it fall to its
full length.
Now there were two possessions in which she and Jim both took a mighty
pride. One was Jim’s gold watch that had been his father’s and his grandfather’s.
The other was Della’s hair.
So now Della’s beautiful hair fell around her, ripping and shining like
water. It reached below her knee and made itself almost a garment for her. And
then she did it up again nervously and quickly.
On went her old brown jacket. On went her old brown hat. She left the
apartment and ran down the stairs to the street.
She stopped where the sign read: “Madame Sofronie. Hair Goods of All
Kinds.” Up the stairs she ran
“Will you buy may hair?” asked Della.
“Twenty dollars,” said Madame, lifting the long hair with a practiced hand.
For the next two hours, Della ransacked the stores for Jim’s present. And
she found it at last, a beautiful platinum watch chain. Twenty-one dollars they
tool from her for it, and she hurried home with 87 cents.
Jim was never late, and Della waited nervously for him to arrive.
Suddenly, the door opened and Jim stepped in. When he saw Della, he stopped,
as immovable as a dog that smells a bird.
“Jim, darling,” she cried,» don’t look at me that way. I sold my hair
because I couldn’t have lived through Christmas without giving you a present.
Don’t you like me just as well, anyhow?”
Jim seemed to wake quickly out of his trance. He hugged Della and then
drew a package from his overcoat pocket and threw it on the table. Inside Della
found an expensive set of combs for her vanished hair.

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 “Never mind, Jim,” she said, “My hair grows fast.” And then she leaped up
like a cat. Jim had not yet seen his beautiful present. She held the chain out to
him eagerly. “Give me your watch,” she cried. “I want to see how it looks on
it!”.

Read the story. The last few lines are missing. How do you think the story ends?
Discuss it in the group.

Writers often put words in an unusual order to make their style of writing more
interesting. Rephrase these sentences by changing the word order. For some
items, other changes may be necessary.

1. Three times Della counted it. Della counted it three times.

2. Rapidly she pulled down her hair
3. On went her old brown jacket
4. On went her old brown hat
5. Up the stairs she ran
6. Twenty-one dollars they took from her

The structure of these two lines is unusual for another reason. What do you
think it is?

1. One dollar and eighty-seven cents

2. Her Jim.

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Exercise 9
Christmas trees are a popular symbol of the holiday season. But after the
holidays are over, people throw the trees away.
Now people can enjoy a Christmas tradition without wasting trees. In Virginia,
there’s a store that rents trees to customers, After the holidays, renters return
their plants grow. Renters can have the mulch, which protects soil and helps
plats grow. Renters can have the mulch for their gardens. Or, they can denote it
to the local community.
Last year, 85% of the trees were returned. That’s a nice gift for Mother Nature!
Some people send Christmas cards that are made from recycled paper, What are
some other ways people help protect nature?

1. What is a popular symbol of the holiday season?

2. What do people do with their trees when the holidays are over?
3. Where is the store that rents Christmas trees to customers?
4. What does the store do with the trees after the customers return them?
5. What percent (%) of the trees were returned last year?
6. How is mulch useful?

Exercise 10
What would you like someone to give you for Christmas? Tell what would you
like and why you would like it.

Exercise 11
Make a list of Christmas presents for your friends and relatives

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