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renditions were often anything but melodious.

Older children sang the closing chorus and then broke into their rendition of “Here Comes Santa Claus.” Soon we heard the expected foot-thumping of “Himself” in the school porch. “Himself” was usually one of the dads from the area dressed in an asinine Santa mask and enshrouded in a big fur coat with a belt of sleigh bells tied around his waist. The bells were usually not the only “belt” Santa had. As a rule, to give him the courage he apparently needed to perform this function, his buddies would load him up with several stiff rounds of Christmas cheer. His mandate seemed directed more at entertaining the adults in the audience than at endearing himself to the children. Most of us sat in dreaded