A Winter's Tale
By: Robin
"Adam, its too soon, don't!" Joe pleaded. "He can't hear
the truth! It will
spoil the holiday."
"Not yet!" Ben begged. "It's a holiday tradition."
"But PA!" Adam argued. He loved his family more than life itself
but this was
too much. "He has to know."
It was a dark, cold winter on the Ponderosa, days before Christmas.
"It's a Cartwright TRADITION!" Ben pleaded. "Not this year,
Adam."
"But Pa!" Adam argued. "Hoss is the laughing stock of all
the hands in the
bunk house for talking about all this nonsense!"
"So? I'll fire them for picking on my son!" Ben growled. "I
don't care if it
is a week before Christmas!"
"And then I'll shoot 'em!" Little Joe said twirling his pistol
hot headedly.
"And I also don't care if it is just before Christmas neither."
"Watch where you point that thing!" Adam warned his youngest brother
and
shoved a thick poetry book in his pants to protect his pride. "I sure
don't want
to be spending Christmas nursing a bullet hole in my vitals."
Hoss stepped back towards the massive, like himself, stone fireplace and
peeped up the chimney. "Me and Joe cleaned the chimney this afternoon.
Like I
said Adam, I done wrote him a letter like I did every year. I explained
how I
been real nice this year. You and Pa too and even Little Joe have been more
nice
than naughty."
"That's true, big brother," Joe winked who appreciated Hoss's
generosity of
spirit and naivety. "Lots of gals said how nice I was this year."
Ben shot him a warning look."JOSEPH!"
"Except that month when you ran off, …" Hoss agreed. He hhad to
do Joe's
chores that entire month.
Joe smiled at how naughty he had been with naughty Julia Bullette
"Eleven out of twelve months isn't bad," Adam agreed. Suddenly
the
ridiculousness of the situation hit him. "What am I saying?" He
shook his head.
Hoss ignored Adam's outburst and pulled a long list out of his pocket and
checked off each chore in turn " And I got Hop Sing to iron my Christmas
night
shirt, all our Christmas duds…the red and green plaid flannel."t;
"The one with the matching hat?" Joe asked. "You look mighty
fine in that
hat, Big Brother."
"Thanks Little Brother!" Hoss grinned. "Maybe Santa will
bring you a fine
sleeping chapeau too!"
"And Hop Sing steamed my burgundy velour robe too!" Ben added.
He loved his
burgundy robe with the pink satin lapels that had been a Christmas gift
from a
steamy admirer years earlier. Steamy Julia Bulette had excellent taste in
robes.
"And my night shirt too! And my fuzzy Rudolf the red nosed reindeer
slippers!" Little Joe looked over Hoss's shoulder. "And Adam's
red flannel boxers
too!" Joe looked over at Adam with a pleading look in his green eyes.
"…And I got the cookies on that special plate all ready but thhis year,
I'm a
gonna sit up on the roof and wait for that tiny sled and reindeer to land…"
Hoss said firmly.
"I don't know about that son…." Ben said. "It could be dangerous
with all
that ice and snow up on the roof. Sure don't want you falling off the roof,
Hoss." Maybe Adam was correct. Maybe Hoss had to be told the truth.
After all, he
wasn't a child.
"But Pa!" Hoss pleaded. "I got it all figured out. "
"It's a tradition!" Joe argued as he sat down on the wood box.
Hoss leaned over and whispered to Adam and his father "Besides Pa,
Little Joe
still believes. Can't have him hearing otherwise. Can we? He's just a kid!"
Ben and Adam realized what had been going on all along. Hoss was no fool.
He
was putting on the charade because he assumed Little Joe still believed
in
Santa.
Suddenly Adam realized how foolish he had been. Hoss was doing it all for
Joe.
"Mmm..How about instead of climbing on the roof, you can stay in my
room on
Christmas Eve. In the rotating room schedule, my room is supposed to be
in the
front of the house on Christmas Eve," Adam offered.
"Sounds good to me!" Hoss grinned.
"And to me too!" Ben smiled.
"Think Mrs. Claus might come with Santa this year? She reminds me of
my dead
mama," Joe sighed nostalgically.