Leaves Rewind: Spider's Christmas

Originally published on 21 December 2019, today's post features a special guest writer: My daughter Anne Casey wrote this story when she was 9 years old. If memory serves, she was a fan of the book "How Spider Saved Thanksgiving," which likely influenced her characters. She gifted her book to our family in 2003. It's fun to look back and see how our family and our holiday traditions helped shape her story. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.



By Anne Katherine Casey

Once upon a time there was a little Spider who's name was Spider. Spider lived in a Christmas tree in the woods. Of course, Spider didn't know what a Christmas tree was. He didn't even know what CHRISTMAS was.

One day, Spider's friend Fly came by for a visit. Fly was so excited, her wings were buzzing! Spider sat down and said, "What are YOU so excited about, Fly?"

"The most amazing thing has happened!" Fly said. Now Fly lived under the roof of the farmer's house. "The farmer and his wife are growing a TREE in their HOUSE!"

Spider sat up. "That's the silliest thing I've ever heard!"

"And they put shiny things all over it, and lights, and food, and sparkly little people with wings, AND little men made of...of...jeenjur bread. Yes. Jeenjur bread."

"That's silly!" said Spider.

"And they are talking about Christmas Eve," said Fly. "It's when they put out cookies and milk for an old red man named Santa and his flying red-nosed reindeer!"

"A red-nosed reindeer?" said Spider. "What do they look like?"

Fly thought a minute. "Well, they have black feet, a brown body, and shiny red noses."

"Absurd!" said Spider.

"And they were talking about Christmas morning," Fly said. "It's when they give each other pretty boxes. Then they open the boxes, and it makes them really happy."

"That's funny, Fly!" said Spider. Then Fly flew off.

Then, in the middle of the night, when Spider was asleep, the tree started shaking!

"Oh, my!" yelled Spider as he woke up. "It's a red-nosed reindeer!" For just a few yards away from the tree, rumbling-grumbling trough the woods, was a giant monster! It had four giant black feet, a long, skinny, flat brown body, and a giant red nose that has little lights on each end.

Now the monster was really a truck, but Spider had never seen a truck before. Then his tree began to fall!

"Help!" said Spider, "I'm falling!"

Spider looked around. His tree was on the ground. Then, two big humans picked up the tree and carried it towards the truck. Spider was bumpetty-bumped, jouncety-jounced, and thrown all over the place as they walked towards the truck.

"Oh," said Spider, "they are going to feed me to the reindeer. I'm going to get eaten!"

But the men did not feed Spider to the truck. They put the tree on the truck's body, and threw ropes all around it.

"Oh! I'm going for a smooth ride!" said Spider. Then the truck set off.

When the truck stopped, they were outside a tiny little house. There was a little man dressed in a red suit on the lawn, with a big, white beard and lights all around. He never moved.

"Is it Santa?" asked Spider, but no one was around to answer him.

The tree was taken into the little house and put up in a corner. Spider climbed to the top of the tree so he would be able to see.

Just then, a man and a woman and two little children came in. They had so many boxes, it made Spider's head hurt to look at them all.

"I wonder," said Spider. "Are those the boxes that they open on Christmas morning?" But the boxes were already open and there were a lot of shiny things inside. Spider saw a little girl with wings and a golden thing on her head. He saw a big, round, shiny ball. He even saw a  little man made of jeenjur bread.

Then the family started taking out a long string of food. The food was yellow and crinkly and smelled delicious. They wound the string of food all around the tree. Then they put shiny, tickly things on the tree. Spider stared in amazement.

After that, the family put the people with wings on the tree, and the jeenjur bread men. They put on the glass balls, red and gold and green and purple. They hurt Spider's eyes!

After a long time, they were done. Then the little girl got up on the man's shoulder's and put the shiniest thing of all right on the top of the tree. A huge golden star.

Spider watched as the human put out socks above the fireplace and read stories about the red-nosed reindeer and the fat old man. Then they watched a movie about a boy with a drum. Spider thought it was all very lovely.

That night, Spider was looking at all the wonderful things on the tree when he heard a thump-thump coming from the chimney. Then, of all things, a fat old man dressed in a red suit came falling out of the fireplace!

"Oh my gosh," said Spider. "Could it be Santa?"

Now Santa has very good hearing, and when he heard Spider, he laughed and his belly jiggled. "Ho, ho, ho!" he said, picking Spider up with his big, black glove.

"Hello there. Who are you?"

"I'm Spider, Mr. Santa. Did you come with your red-nosed reindeer?"

"Why, yes," said Santa. "There's...uh let's see...Rudolph...Vixen...Comet...Cupid...
Donner...Blitzen...Bob?  No, not Bob! Ah, oh well. I can never remember them all. Ho ho ho ho!" Santa laughed. Then he reached inside his belt and pulled out a tiny, tiny, TINY Little box. It had a scrap of shiny purple paper on it and a little green bow.

"Merry Christmas, Spider!" said Santa. Then he put out lots and lots of presents under the tree, pressed his nose, and disappeared.

The next morning, all the children raced from their bedrooms and began tearing open boxes. The girl got a doll, a pair of roller skates, and a drawing kit. The boy got a race car, a big box of tools, and a little drum.

While the family was opening presents, Spider opened his little box. Inside were eight pairs of tiny mittens, one for each of his little legs.

Spider put on his new mittens and sat down on a tree branch.

"This is the best Christmas ever!" he thought out loud.

THE END


Until next time... 

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