Christmas At the Line Shack
By Mike Moutoux

 ‘Twas Christmas Eve, the sun had set
And dark was drawing near
I was all alone at the ranch line-shack
A turn for which I liked to volunteer

When you’re 50 years old and single
Town ain’t the place to be
There’s too much family goins-on
It’s just better if I’m out there on Christmas Eve

Been doin’ this for fifteen years
The others think I’m kind
But without the colored lights or holiday bustle
It helps take the whole thing off my mind

Out there, it’s just me and the cows
And a horse for company
No mistletoe, no nativity scene
No gigglin’ children on Santa’s knee

I’d spent the day out on a stretch of fence
Where it was broke, I got down and fixed it
Busted some ice in the crick so the cows could drink
Now for supper, coffee, beans, and a biscuit

About then the wind started blowin’
And ridin’ it a strange kind of noise
It was almost like voices, like singin’
Like a choir of girls and boys

I grabbed my coat and stepped outside
Though dark, I could see just fine
It was a group of riders each holdin’ a lantern 
Strung out in a great big line

They were comin’ down the slope
Followin’ the contours of the ground
Like a herd of snowflakes glowin’ from within
They were swirlin’ all around

I stood there in quiet amazement
It was really quite a thrill
All them riders singing, those yellow lights dancin’
As they wound down the snow- covered hill

They all gathered at the shack
It was there I could finally see
My neighbors, my friends, and their families
All dismountin’ and smilin’ at me

“Well,” says I, “Ain’t this a surprise
Ain’t you folks got Christmas to do?”
“Yes we have,” says a voice in the back,
“But first we’re bringin’ Christmas to you.”

It seems they’d been to church that day
And heard what the first Christmas was like
Afterwards, they were talkin’ about goodwill to men
When someone said, “You know, we should go visit Mike.”

Now they didn’t stay long, but long enough
To fill that cabin and my heart with their good will
But the best gift of all is the memory of them riders
In the dark, on that snow-covered hill

©Mike Moutoux 2007