In praise of Santa

As we lay snug in our beds on Monday night, one man was on the mother of all night shifts. Of course the work proper began months before.

After a postal avalanche in November, there was the sorting and checking to get through. Though always desirous to grant every wish, in recent years it hasn’t been so easy.

Now more than ever, a “who wants what” list has to be carefully cross-checked against cash flow and inventory.

Yes, there were some hair-raising moments when he wondered if he could pull it off, where he worried that there wouldn’t be enough for everyone – but somehow, any how, with a little help from his friends, this year once more, he did it.

Criss-crossing the globe in one night was the other miracle. After all, this is not a fit man. Having one nibble of the biscuits left for him in every house, as he did at yours, takes its toll on both tummy and ticker. Wedging himself down millions of sooty chimneys must be the equivalent of a 40-a-day habit.

And yet on Christmas morning, from Lapland to Listowel, from Broome to Belmullet, he delivered. Batteries included.

For doing whatever it took to make Christmas, Santa we salute you.