'Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In vain hopes St. Nicholas would soon be there;
We children were nestled and snug in our beds,
While visions of Santa Claus danced in our heads;
And Mom in her nightgown, and Dad in his cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap,
When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the blinds and threw open the latch.
The moon hidden by clouds full of snow
Threw darkness of night to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But an odd-looking sleigh, and six bony reindeer,
With a skinny old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than vultures they came in the dark,
And he whistled, and shouted, and laughed like a lark;
"Now Zero, my friend, lead us, take all of us down
To the houses below us in this little town!
To the top of the porch! To the top of the wall!
Now dash away! Dash away! Dash away all!"
As the 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 a sleigh full of toys, and old Santa Claus too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The rattling and creaking of each bony hoof.
As I drew in my head, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.
He was dressed in thin cloth, from his skull to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys he had slung on his back;
Who knew the terrors to be found in that sack!
His eyes – they were dark! His grin rather scary!
His skin bone-white, his nose quite unlike a cherry!
His toothy mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;
The dim lights of the room cast him in a dull glow
So he looked like a demon from the pit below;
He had a round face and hands without any skin,
That clicked and clattered as he searched the bag within.
He was skinny and tall, a real scary old elf,
And I screamed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head
Soon gave me a feeling of filling with dread;
He spoke not a word, but went straight to work,
And filled all our 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 coffin, to his team gave a yell,
And away they all flew with the toll of a church bell.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he flew out of sight,
"Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"