Awakening from my usual nap before leaving to make my Christmas deliveries, I got out of bed, excited for my journey to begin. Entering the changing room, I pressed a button. As a cylinder slowly lowered, I waited patiently while it spun around me. When it raised back up, I was dressed for the day in my best suit.
Leaving my room, I stepped on my Flutter Disk, a flat, green saucer that hovered above the ground for transportation. “Dining Hall,” I commanded. After the floating device slowly rose a foot above the floor, it began moving towards the hall as I balanced myself on top of it.
Arriving quickly, I commanded, “Table 15,” and was deposited immediately at my favorite spot by the fireplace. Stepping off, I sat in a chair which automatically scooted me up to the table. Speaking quietly, I ordered, “Eight cheese coneys, fries, and strawberry milk.” A few seconds later the center of the table rose up about eight inches exposing a tray with my piping hot meal on it. “Got to love these modern devices,” I murmured as I slid the tray in front of me.
Finishing my delicious meal, I once again got on the Flutter Disk and announced, “List Room.” Moving toward the area where my Nice List was kept, I thought about how much easier Christmas had become.
“Good evening, Santa,” Carter stated, holding out a small Iridium stick that looked like a mini candy cane. “Here’s your List Stick. Just insert it into your sleigh’s instrument panel and you’re good to go. The names of the children and their wishes are all in the order of delivery, as you requested.”
“Great! Thanks for getting it all together for me,” I replied taking the stick from Carter. Returning to my transportation disk, I cried, “Sleigh barn.” The saucer immediately rose and began its trip.
When I arrived, I saw the Helio-Rocket 200 at the end of the barn. Unlike my old sleigh, the runners had been replaced with a series of small nozzles, like those on the bottom of a rocket. These would propel the sleigh like a jet. The nozzles also could swivel downward allowing me to land and take off vertically like a helicopter, instead of horizontally like a plane.
I shook my head and thought how much I missed my reindeer. “Sometimes,” I said aloud sadly, “I miss the old days.”
“I understand what you mean,” Sledge, the manager of transportation, replied. “But you have to admit, this is a more efficient way to travel.”
“Though I agree, I miss the excitement of watching the reindeer fly while directing them. Are we on schedule?” I asked. “Don’t want to be late for the children.”
Sledge, turned toward me and gave a thumbs up. Going back to work, he informed me, “I’m almost finished with the final adjustments. You should be right on time for your first deliveries on Christmas Island, Santa. Do you have the List Stick?” Handing it to Sledge I watched him insert it at the top of the instrument panel.
A few minutes later Sledge climbed out of the Helio-Rocket 200 and announced with a bow, “The sleigh is ready for your Christmas deliveries, Santa. You remember how everything works, don’t you?”.”
“Of course, I do!” I exclaimed. “Do you have the . . .”
“Remote?” Sledge finished my question. “Right here.” The sleigh elf pulled a small green box from a pouch on his belt, and handed it to me. “Be sure to put it on your belt so you can get back to the sleigh from inside the homes.”
“I’ve got it all under control. Now, if you don’t mind, I believe it’s time to begin my deliveries.”
Sledge stepped aside and I climbed into my sleigh. After strapping on my seat belt, I hit the ‘Start’ knob and flipped on the Auto Pilot. Pressing the ‘Assent’ button, the sleigh rose upward. Just as I hit ‘Next’ to go to my first stop, I hollered, “Tell Ms. Claus I will be home in time for breakfast.”
Arriving at the Christmas Islands, I began making my deliveries. Everything was going like clockwork. My sleigh’s efficiency soon put me ahead of schedule when I arrived at Quoddy Head in Lubec, Maine, my first stop in the United States.
Hovering downward to settle the sleigh on the rooftop, I pressed the ‘Gift’ switch, and the presents were transported from the North Pole into my bag. Once my bag was full, I hit ‘House’ and was instantly transported into the home.
After arranging all the gifts under the tree, I sat in a comfortable chair near the fireplace to enjoy the cookies the family had left me. This was one of my favorite sites since they provided Egg Nog instead of milk. Savoring the last drop, I reached for the remote, but it was not there.
Grabbing my belt, I searched but still could not find it. Panicked, I hunted among the gifts I had laid out, and could not find the remote. Since I no longer carried the Yellow Magic Fairy Dust to get up the chimney, I grew flustered and paced the floor in front of the fireplace.
Wondering how I was going to return to my sleigh, I screamed into my walkie-talkie, “HELP! Will someone please help me?” over and over again trying to reach one of the elves at the North Pole.
“Santa – Santa! Wake up!” Ms. Claus shouted as she shook me.
“Anya, you have to help me…PLEASE!!” I yelled.
“Calm down Santa. Nothing is wrong. I think you were having a bad dream,” Ms. Claus explained.
Relieved, I sat up in bed and looked at Anya. “Thank you, my dear. That dream was too real. After explaining what had happened, I asked, “Now why would I be so worried about delivering toys to children? It’s only the beginning of March, and we have 10 months before Christmas.”
“You know realistic dreams like that are not uncommon. Could it be those eight cheese coneys one of the elves brought home from his visit to America that led to this nightmare?” Anya questioned while giving me the evil eye.
“They were great,” I said, shaking my head, “but maybe eating them late at night with the strawberry milk was a bad decision.”
As Anya turned to face me, she smiled. “I think if you follow your own advice, you might not have these bad dreams.” Ms. Claus paused for a moment then added, “Everyone knows how magical Christmas is, but I’m not sure it will ever be as magical as in the dream you had tonight.”
While we both laughed, Anya and I slipped under the covers and laid back down to finish our long winter’s nap.
Notes From Santa
I hope you enjoyed today’s story. I will post another one March 15th. If you have any comments or if there is something you would like me to tell you about, please feel free to leave me a comment. Until next week . . .
To read more about Christmas Deliveries please check out:
Stories From Santa & Ms. Claus on Vacation (Part 3) – October 7, 2019
The Last Deliveries – January 6, 2020
Santa’s Improved Sleigh – March 16, 2020
Christmas Deliveries – December 28, 2020
Find Cincy Santa (@CincySanta) on:
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Illustration by Dr. Mathias’s Miniature Extravaganza