Read this when
A Visit from St. Nicholas ('Twas the Night Before Christmas)
The night before the big day, when nobody can sleep. 🎄
Who it's for
Few pieces capture the hush-and-sparkle of a long-awaited night better than this one: children "nestled all snug in their beds" while the house waits for something wonderful.
Excited, can't sleep→Cosy and full of wonder
Feelings it meets
What it is
A 56-line rhyming poem set on Christmas Eve. A father is woken by a clatter outside and watches St. Nicholas arrive by sleigh with eight reindeer, slip down the chimney, fill the stockings and fly off calling "Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night."
Where to find it
Public domain; widely available free online and in many illustrated picture-book editions.
Before you start
Age: All ages
If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them.Henry David Thoreau, Walden, “Conclusion”
