The Homecoming: A Christmas Story Page #10

it was in a stable.

And the first things

to lay eyes on him,

except for his mama

and his papa...

The, uh, first things

to lay eyes on him,

was the sheep

and the goats and the cows

and all the other animals

that lived there.

All dumb animals.

All dumb animals.

But they were the first ever

to see Jesus' face.

And ever since that night,

animals all over the world

wait up...

and at the stroke

of midnight,

they kneel down

and they pray

and speak

in human voices.

I wonder what they say.

( clattering )

Somebody's

on the roof!

Santa Claus!

Oh, will you look

who's home.

It's Daddy!

( chuckling )

You want some coffee?

I've been keeping it warm.

I'll help you, Mama.

Don't cry, Mama.

He's home.

( crying ):

Oh, John.

Where have you been?

Oh, what a woman

I married.

I picked a peach when I came

a-courtin' you, girl.

Oh.

Oh.

Oh, let me down,

you crazy thing.

I set a good example

to these children,

you go acting like a crazy man.

Put me down.

Oh...

Where in the world

were you, John?

Well, the last bus

out of town

ran into an accident.

Oh, I heard.

I just knew

you were on it.

Well, no, I wasn't on it,

but I was stuck over there.

Oh, thank you, John-Boy.

I didn't see any point

to spending Christmas

in a bus station,

so I started hitchhiking.

I must've spent

half the day

out there on that road with

my thumb up in the air.

Got as far as Hickory Creek

before dark and from then on,

it was every step

along the way by foot.

What's in that sack, Daddy?

Well, now, doggone

if I know, Ben.

Why don't we just dump

it out and have a look.

( laughing )

I wonder

what we got?

( laughing )

Where did

they come from?

Well, you see, I was

walking across the yard,

I didn't want

to make any noise

'cause I figured

that you kids

would all be asleep,

you see?

All of a sudden,

I saw something flying

straight

across the sky.

It landed right on top

of this house.

We heard it.

You did?

Well, I wait a second,

then I saw this team

of some kind of animals,

looked like about the size

of a year-old calf, you know?

Had little pointy

things coming up

at the top

of the head.

Reindeer!

I think so, Ben, I think so.

Now, I never seen a reindeer,

I don't know for sure,

but I think that's

what it must've been.

And I looked and then this

little old man got out.

Little old man

dressed in black boots

and a red coat and some kind

of white fur all around here.

Santa Claus.

Sure it was!

But I'd never seen

that old son of a gun

before, Elizabeth,

I didn't know who it was.

I thought it might be

somebody trying

to break into the house.

So I looked around

and I got me the biggest

rock I could find.

You hit him with a rock?

No, I didn't hit him,

but I scared him.

I scared him so much

that that sleigh

slid right off

of the roof of the house

and landed down in the yard.

( laughing )

You should've seen that old man

cracking that whip

and telling them reindeer, Ben,

reindeer to take off.

But I was able to grab ahold

before he left the ground.

You talked to him?

No, I didn't talk to him,

but I wrestled him,

and I got me

a whole big armload

of that stuff in that sleigh

before he got away.

And there it is.

( gasps )

( paper rustling )

I think this one's

for you, Elizabeth.

This is for you.

Let's go.

Who's is this?

Oh, this

is yours.

( paper rustling )

Oh...

I never in all my life

saw anything so pretty.

A teddy bear.

A train set.

I never thought

I'd get a train set.

Mama, look.

Oh, it's too

pretty to wear.

( plays harmonica )

JOHN:

Hey, Ben.

Would you bring

that one over here?

I think this

must be for you.

What in the world?

You've been wishing

for springtime.

Flowers in the dead of winter.

It's a miracle.

There's two

left over.

Those are for grandma

and grandpa.

Son, why don't you

open yours up?

Oh, yeah.

I wonder how word got

all the way to the North Pole

you wanted to be a writer?

Well, I guess he must be

a right smart man.

I don't know a thing

about the writing trade, son,

but if you want to take it up,

you got to give it your best.

That's true, Daddy.

I see some sleepy children.

Off to bed now.

You can play

in the morning.

( children groaning )

Good night, Daddy.

Good night, sugar.

Don't say

good night, yet.

Wait until we're all in bed

and the last light goes out.

Okay, get along, kids.

Thanks, Dad.

You all right, sweetheart?

I am now.

Well, you won't be having

another day like this one.

I'm not going back.

You quit your job?

I think hard times

are almost over.

I think the country's

going to get better.

Until it does get better,

I'll make a living here

on Walton's Mountain.

In the dead of winter,

with everything

covered with snow...

There's timber for lumber,

and railroad ties, firewood...

In the spring,

I'll plow and plant.

Come fall, I'll harvest

what I can.

We'll get along.

You must have spent every

cent of your paycheck.

Just about.

But, John...

what are we going

to live on this coming week?

Love, woman.

NARRATOR:

Christmas is a season

when we give tokens of love.

In that house, we received

not tokens, but love itself.

I became the writer

I promised my father I'd be,

and my destiny led me far

from Walton's Mountain.

My mother lives there still,

alone now,

for we lost my father in 1969.

My brothers and sisters, grown

with children of their own,

live not far away.

We are still a close family

and see each other when we can.

And like Miss Mamie Baldwin's

fourth cousins,

we're apt to sample the recipe

and then gather around

the piano and hug each other

while we sing the old songs,

for no matter

the time or distance,

we are united in the memory

of that Christmas Eve.

More than 30 years

and 3,000 miles away,

I can still hear

those sweet voices.

ELIZABETH:

Good night, John-Boy.

JOHN-BOY:

Good night, Elizabeth.

Good night, Daddy.

JOHN:

Good night, son.

Good night, Mary Ellen.

MARY ELLEN:

Good night, Daddy.

Good night, Mama.

OLIVIA:

Good night, Mary Ellen.

Good night, Jim-Bob.

JIM-BOB:

Good night, Mama.

Good night, Erin.

ERIN:

Good night, Jim-Bob.

Good night, Ben.

BEN:

Good night, Erin.

Good night, everybody.

( soft acoustic guitar plays )

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