This story is a reflective tale, a patchwork of my memories from Christmases of my youth combined into one story. Although it is a work of fiction the people are real.

A Christmas concert at the Bragg Creek Round Hall.

It was Friday, December 19th, 1958. Eighteen inches of fresh snow had blanketed the hamlet of Bragg Creek turning it into a pristine wonderland. Tonight was the annual school Christmas concert at the Round Hall so volunteers were to meet at the hall for a day of preparation for this special event. The day was bright and sunny, but the deep snow was hindering travel. Undaunted, the local women bundled up and walked through the knee-deep snow to the hall. A few days ago, several boxes of donations, goodies and decorations had been dropped off at Elsdon’s Bragg Creek Trading Post. Very early that morning Jack Elsdon delivered the boxes to the hall by loading them on a large sled and pulling the sled by hand across the frozen Elbow River to the hall. Jack started a fire in the wood burning stove in the centre of the room; stoked it with wood and then placed a large enamel coffee pot on top. By the time the women arrived the hall was cozy and warm, the aroma of coffee filled the air!

The work began as gifts were wrapped and candy bags stuffed with an assortment of Christmas candy and oranges. A candy cane was carefully tied to each candy bag with a red ribbon. Mid-morning the women took a break to enjoy a cup of coffee. About then, the Fullerton brothers, who had a post & pole company, arrived in their huge logging truck breaking a trail through the snow! Jack, Steve, and Jim were pleased to provide the Christmas tree for the concert and what a beauty it was! The tree was set up near the stage and everyone pitched in to decorate it with strings of popcorn garlands, ornaments and candy canes. Someone had anonymously donated a beautiful hand-crafted star that was placed on the very top of the tree. Spruce boughs were carefully hung along the log walls to add to the festive décor. Lanterns had been placed on hooks on the log beams providing soft lighting and making the room warm and inviting. Dave Jacobs, Bun Burles, Gene Fullerton and Jack Merryfield arrived with Jack’s truck loaded with wooden chairs and benches that were quickly brought in and set up in theatre fashion. Just as everything seemed ready for the concert, in came Bob Fullerton and Dan Boucher with a very large chair covered with a beautiful Hereford cowhide. Bob announced, “Well, Santa has to have something comfortable to sit on!”

Suddenly, off in the distance, they heard the jingling of bells as a team of horses pulling a sleigh arrived driven by Keitha Watrin whose cheeks were red and rosy from the cold. Keitha had picked up her mail at Jackie McLennan’s post office and was on her way back to her ranch. She stopped by the Round Hall and donated some straw bales and a beautiful nativity scene that had been handmade and donated by Bob McLennan, who was a master woodworker. The old Round Hall was going to be a magical place that evening and everyone was looking forward to the concert.

Meanwhile, the school students were attending the little one-room school house with their teacher Miss Lillian Kelly. Their excitement was building and it was difficult to keep the kids focussed on school work so Miss Kelly decided it was best to spend the afternoon rehearsing for the concert. Desks were pushed aside and the students practiced their rhythm band performances, Christmas songs, recitations and skits. The school was kept warm and toasty by the large upright Findley Brothers wood heater that stood at the front of the classroom. Sitting on the stove was a large pot containing hot chocolate for everyone to enjoy.

The evening arrived with clear starlit skies and crisp, frosty air. The roads had been miraculously cleared. Neighbours from miles around made their way to the Round Hall filling it with energy and excitement. The Christmas concert turned out to be a wonderful success. For some reason, the kids had forgotten about Santa when suddenly the door flew open followed by the sound of heavy bootsteps, jingling bells and a loud “Ho! Ho! Ho!”. To the delight of everyone, in came Santa carrying a huge red bag full of gifts. A few of the smaller children were frightened at first but when they noticed that most of their friends weren’t scared, they soon joined in the group surrounding Santa’s chair!

Some of the older children thought that Santa looked vaguely familiar – he kind of resembled their neighbour Albert Sanders. No! It couldn’t be Mr. Sanders! It was Santa!

By J.M. Nylund