'Twas the Night Before Christmas

[lonestar]

'Twas the Night Before Christmas
or Account of a Visit from St. Nicholas
by
Major Henry Livingston Jr. (1748-1828)
(previously believed to be by Clement Clarke Moore)

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
In hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there;

The children were nestled all snug in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced in their heads;
And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in my cap,
Had just settled down for a long winter's nap,

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,
When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
Santa and his sleigh on the new-fallen snow
"Now, DASHER! now, DANCER! now, PRANCER and VIXEN!
On, COMET! on CUPID! on, DONDER and BLITZEN!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

As 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 the sleigh full of toys, and St. Nicholas too.

And then, in a twinkling, I heard on the roof
The prancing and pawing of each little hoof.
As I drew in my hand, and was turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with a bound.

He was dressed all in fur, from his head to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with ashes and soot;
A bundle of toys he had flung on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just opening his pack.

His eyes -- how they twinkled! his dimples how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white as the snow;

The stump of a pipe he held tight in his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head like a wreath;
He had a broad face and a little round belly,
That shook, when he laughed like a bowlful of jelly.

He was chubby and plump, a right jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite of myself;
A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,
And filled all the 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 sleigh, to his team gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove out of sight,
"MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL, AND TO ALL A GOOD-NIGHT!"

To all on OM I wish you a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year!

I know I have sent my letter to Santa may he bring Y'all those things that Y'all desire..

Peace on Earth and Good Will to Men..

[lonestar]

JUST AS A SIDE NOTE..

After getting to church tonight after a long Hiatus, I was reminded of what tomorrow means.. The birth of Jesus Christ my Lord and Savoir.

I also have decided that I have not been a good Christian over the Past months.. I hope to fix that from this point on..

That said I pray for lots of lost souls on here mine included, that we all be a bit less contentious..

[cutthemdown]

We could all work at being more accepting and understanding.

[theAPAOps5]

Merry Christmas all and happy birthday Jesus. Heck even if we all take a day to be nice and courteous to someone, whether be it on the Orange Mane or at the mall we make someone's day that much better!

[lonestar]

I got this my my Aussie Cousin to night and thought I would share..

Whether it is true not sure but makes more sense than anything else I have seen..



There is one Christmas Carol that has always baffled me. What in the world do leaping lords, French hens, swimming swans, and especially the partridge who won't come out of the pear tree have to do with Christmas?

This week, I found out.

From 1558 until 1829, Roman Catholics in England were not permitted to practice their faith openly. Someone during that era wrote this carol as a catechism song for young Catholics. It has two levels of meaning: the surface meaning plus a hidden meaning known only to members of their church. Each element in the carol has a code word for a religious reality which the children could remember.

-The partridge in a pear tree was Jesus Christ.

-Two turtle doves were the Old and New Testaments.

-Three French hens stood for faith, hope and love.

-The four calling birds were the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke &John.

-The five golden rings recalled the Torah or Law, the first five books of the Old Testament.

-The six geese a-laying stood for the six days of creation.

-Seven swans a-swimming represented the sevenfold gifts of the Holy Spirit--Prophesy, Serving, Teaching, Exhortation, Contribution, Leadership, and Mercy.

-The eight maids a-milking were the eight beatitudes.

-Nine ladies dancing were the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit--Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self Control.

-The ten lords a-leaping were the ten commandments.

-The eleven pipers piping stood for the eleven faithful disciples.

-The twelve drummers drumming symbolized the twelve points of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

So there is your history for today. This knowledge was shared with me and I found it interesting and enlightening and now I know how that strange song became a Christmas Carol...so pass it on if you wish.'

Merry Christmas Everyone

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by theAPAOps5

Merry Christmas all and happy birthday Jesus. Heck even if we all take a day to be nice and courteous to someone, whether be it on the Orange Mane or at the mall we make someone's day that much better!

Whats funny is every yr i say I am going to be less of a dick on the mane, but every yr I fail. Maybe if we win the Superbowl.

[Requiem]

[sirhcyennek81]

Merry Christmas.

A reminder, per the forum guidelines:

Use the Ignore Feature: Each poster has the first responsibility to protect themselves from interactions with posters that they don’t care for by using the ignore feature. This is the Internet – not everyone is going to like what you have to say. If you find someone who will not leave you alone, your first course of action should be to put that poster on ignore. Of course, this is not a perfect solution, but it is the first step towards achieving a perfect solution. You will not see direct posts, reputation comments, or receive personal messages from people who are on your ignore list, eliminating any direct contact with this person.

[Requiem]

Great job, Sir.

[Obushma]

Originally Posted by Requiem

You and SoCal both Satanic huh?

Seriously, what kind of prick kid, living in his Moms basement, posts that kind of **** on Christmas?

[Requiem]

Confused libertarian.

[Obushma]

Originally Posted by Requiem

Confused libertarian.

Silly satanic Marxist posting from momma's basement.

[Requiem]

Originally Posted by Obushma

Silly satanic Marxist posting from momma's basement.

I wish. See ya in a couple weeks!

[Obushma]

Originally Posted by Requiem

I wish. See ya in a couple weeks!

Wasn't any family smack....If the fact that you live in your moms basement is smack, I guess the smack is the fact you're 25.

[orangeatheist]

Originally Posted by lonestar

JUST AS A SIDE NOTE..

After getting to church tonight after a long Hiatus, I was reminded of what tomorrow means.. The birth of Jesus Christ my Lord and Savoir.

I also have decided that I have not been a good Christian over the Past months.. I hope to fix that from this point on..

That said I pray for lots of lost souls on here mine included, that we all be a bit less contentious..

Here, let me help you in your quest to be a "better Christian" and make the board a bit less contentious. Read Matthew 6:6.

Oh, and Merry Christmas.

[Requiem]

Originally Posted by Obushma

Wasn't any family smack....If the fact that you live in your moms basement is smack, I guess the smack is the fact you're 25.

Yes, I am 25. Not living in anyone's basement. You will be gone soon enough. And the Internets will rejoice in harmony.

[barryr]

I had something strange but incredible happen to me today. Somebody I apparently don't even know left an envelope for my wife as I was showering and said it was for me and when I opened it, there was 500 dollars and 3 gift cards in it. I've never had something like that happen to me before. Sad thing is I will probably never know who did that and why or be able to thank the person. But just shows that good things can happen when you least expect them when you do nice things for others and have a positive outlook on life. I'm still in shock about it. Hopefully others around here will get something nice done for them too.

[Requiem]

thats pretty cool barry you made out like astick bANDyit

[Obushma]

Originally Posted by Requiem

Yes, I am 25. Not living in anyone's basement. You will be gone soon enough. And the Internets will rejoice in harmony.

I'm not going anywhere you lil satanic sally. Sorry, didn't realize it was your moms spare bedroom and not the basement.

[barryr]

Originally Posted by Requiem

thats pretty cool barry you made out like astick bANDyit

Thanks, it took an hour for me to get rid of the thought of whoever left it would come back and say they made a mistake and left the wrong envelope and I was supposed to get a bill or a Christmas card instead

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by barryr

Thanks, it took an hour for me to get rid of the thought of whoever left it would come back and say they made a mistake and left the wrong envelope and I was supposed to get a bill or a Christmas card instead

What makes you think it wasn't Santa?

[Requiem]

Originally Posted by Obushma

I'm not going anywhere you lil satanic sally. Sorry, didn't realize it was your moms spare bedroom and not the basement.

Straight to the Kingdom of Ban.

[Obushma]

Originally Posted by Requiem

Straight to the Kingdom of Ban.

Hi Sally

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by Obushma

I'm not going anywhere you lil satanic sally. Sorry, didn't realize it was your moms spare bedroom and not the basement.

Not to come to Req's defense but in this case your just outright wrong. Bringing up the moms basement or spare room is just not cool. Everyone knows Req lives in the trailer in the driveway of his moms house. To suggest otherwise is banable!

[cutthemdown]

Originally Posted by Requiem

Straight to the Kingdom of Ban.

If little jokes like that get a ban then it's time to leave the mane for good. You guys can sit around with no one to argue you with and have a good ole liberal time........in your room.....or what most people call mom and dads garage.