The Christmas Convoy
written by: roger turner
@titansdad
I was working at the Postal Service
Part time, answering letters
When one for Santa caught my eyes
I could make this kid’s life better
I read the letter, held it close
I couldn’t promise gifts and stuff
But, I read the damn thing fifteen times
And at that point, I’d had enough
Dear Santa Claus, the letter read
My name is Katy Green
I hope this Christmas is the best
That you have ever seen
I want to let you know I’m scared
You won’t find us Christmas Eve
We are living in a trailer now
But, Santa…I still believe
We lost our house and all our stuff
When we got wiped out by a storm
We had to move to trailer town
And it’s not easy keeping warm
There’s Mum and Dad, and my sisters
All in this trailer built for two
So don’t go where we were last year
No matter what you do
I put the letter in my shirt
Without a second thought
I’d be fired in a heart beat
If I ever did get caught
I went home after work that day
Pulled the letter, showed my spouse
My Christmas gift to them this year
I was gonna find that house
I started calling neighbors
Got my friends involved as well
And told them to get others
As many folks as they could tell
We were in the country’s center
They were stuck out on the coast
We were going to bring Christmas
Just like the Holy Ghost
We put the letter in the paper
Gifts came in from shops and stores
I would come home after working
There’d be gifts outside my door
We started out with eight trucks
We figured that would do the trick
Eight trucks led by a madman
By, the way…my name is Nick
We had five days until Christmas
To get this load to where they were
We had toys and clothes and gift cards
We had no frankincense or myrrh
We had trucks just full of tires
In case we broke down on the way
There was nothing that would stop us
We’d be there on Christmas Day
Each city that we passed through
Our convoy grew in size
The police just let us roll on
They could not believe the size
Our line of trucks was bigger than
Any that I’d seen on the road
And each truck was fully packed up
Each one had a full load
The plan was nearly perfect
Two days and we would be there
We would fix up their old house
Where others wouldn’t dare
We would not only bring them Christmas
We would give them back their house
And we would do it all in silence
Like that poem and that sleeping mouse
Our convoy found the township
And we did the best we could
We ripped the house asunder
And then rebuilt it with new wood
One letter set this movement
Of Christmas love and cheer
In motion for one family
That as yet, weren’t even here
We put lights up and got ready
Found a tree and made it right
When the gifts were all delivered
The house was quite a sight
We went out to the trailers
Just the drivers and no press
This was our Christmas present
Started by a child…who’d have guessed
I knocked upon the trailer
All the trucks lined up the way
We still had twenty four hours
Until it would be Christmas Day
Katy stood before me
With her mother in the back
I stood waiting on the doorstep
Dressed in red with a large sack
As soon as Katy saw me
She new that Santa Claus was here
That he’d seen her letter
And was here with Christmas Cheer
When her mum saw all the trailers
Lined on both sides of the road
She said to me “Dear Santa”
Where are all the trailers stowed
I told them of the letter
And we got them all outside
It didn’t take too much convincing
That we would be going for a ride
When we turned up on their crescent
And we started for their place
Each one of them was crying
Tears were streaming down their face
The house was lit up brightly
The trees were lit up too
The house was their big present
Everything inside was new
The parents stood and wondered
While the kids just went on in
They asked us why we did it
It just took a letter to begin
We made Christmas for this family
We brought a Convoy across the land
Every one who heard about us
Pitched in to lend a hand
We may not quite be Santa
But, we helped him with his load
And next year again at Christmas
There’ll be a Convoy on the road
- The Poppy Man - November 11, 2024
- Oceans Away - October 10, 2024
- The Wild West - August 2, 2024
