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On Christmas Eve many years ago I lay quietly in my bed
I did not russel the sheets, i breathed
slowly and silently, I was listening
for a sound a friend told me I'd never hear
the ringing bells of Santa's sleigh
there is no Santa my friend had insisted
but I knew he was wrong
late that night i did hear sounds
though not of ringing bells, from outside
came the sounds of hissing steam
and squeaking metal
I looked through my window
and saw a train
standing perfectly still in front
of my house
it was wrapped in an apron of steam snow
flakes fell lightly around it
a conductor stood at the open door of one of the cars
he took a large pocket watch from his vest
and looked up at my window
All Aboard!! The conductor cried out
I ran up to him, well
he said are you coming, where i asked?
why to the north pole of course
was his answer
This is the Polar Express
I took his outstreatched hand and he puled me aboard
the train was filled with other children all in their pajamas and nightgowns
We sang
Christmas carols and ate candy's with nuget
centers as white as snow, we drank hot cocoa
as thick and rich as melted chocalate bars
outside the lights of towns
and villages flickeredin the distance
as the Polar Express
raced Northward
soon there were no more lights to be seen we traveled
through
cold dark forests, where mean Wolves roamed
an Whitetailed rabbits hid from our
train as it thundered through the quite wilderness
we climbed mountains so high
it seemed as if we would scrape
the Moon
but the Polar Express never slowed down
faster and faster we ran along
rolling over peaks and through valley's like a
car on a roller coaster
the mountains turned into hills
and hills to snow covered plains
we crossed the Bering desert of
ice the great polar ice cap lights
appeared in the distance, they looked like the lights of a
strange ocean liner
sailing on a frozen sea
there said the conductor is the North
Pole
The North
Pole, it was a huge
city, standing alone at the top of the world
filled with factories where every Christmas toy was made
but first we saw no elf's
they are gathering at the center of
the city the conductor told us that is where
Santa will give the first gift of Christmas
who receives the first gift we all asked?
the conductor answered he will choose
one of you
look shouted one of the children
the elf's
outside we saw hundred's of elf's
as our train drew closer to the center of the North Pole
we slowed to a crawl so crowded were the streets with Santa's helpers
when the Polar Express could go no farther
we stopped then the conductor let us outside
we pressed through the crowd to the edge of a large
open circle in front of us stood Santa's sleigh
the Reindeer were excited they pranced and paced
ringing the silver sleigh bells that
hung from their harnesses it was a magical
sound like nothing Ive ever heard, across the circle the
elf's moved apart and Santa Clause appeared
The elf's cheered wildly, he marched over
to us and pointing to
me said let's have this fellow here
he jumped into his sleigh
the conducter handed me up I sat on Santa's knee
and he asked
now what would you like for Christmas?
I knew
that I could have any gift I could imagine
but the thing I wanted most for Christmas
was not inside Santa's giant bag, what I wanted
more than anything, was one silver bell
from Santa's sleigh, when I asked
Santa smiled
then he gave me a hug, and told an elf
to cut a bell from a reindeer's harness
the elf tossed it up to Santa, he stood
holding the bell high above him
and called out the first
Gift of Christmas!!!
a clock stroke 12:00 as the elf's roared their approval
Santa handed the bell to me
and I put it in my bathrobe pocket the conductor helped me down from
the sleigh, Santa shouted out the reindeer's names and
cracked his whip his team charged forward and climbed
into the air
Santa circled once above us then dissapeared
in the cold dark polar sky
as soon as we were back inside the Polar Express
the other children asked to see the bell I reached into my pocket
but the only thing I felt was a hole
I had lost the silver bell from Santa Clauses sleigh
lets hurry outside and look for it one of the children said but the train gave a sudden
lurch
and started moving, we were on our way
home
it broke my heart to loose the bell
when the train reached my house I sadly left the other children
I stood at my doorway and waved goodbye the conductor said something from the
moving train but I couldn't hear him
what I yelled out
he cupped his hands around his mouth Merry Christmas
he shouted, the Polar Express
let out a loud blast from its whistle and sped
away
on Christmas morning
my little sister Sarah and I opened our presents
when it looked as if everything had been unwrapped
Sarah found one last small
box behind the tree
it had my name on it
inside was the silver bell, there was a note, found this
on the seat of my sleigh fix
that hole in your pocket, signed
Mr. C, I shook the bell
it made the most beautiful sound my sister and I had ever heard
but my mother's said, Oh thats too bad
yes my father its broken
when I'd shaken the bell my parents
had not heard a sound
at one time most of my friends could hear the bell
but as years past it fell silent
for all of them, even Sarah
found one Christmas that she could no longer hear
its sweet sound, though I've grown old the bell
still rings for me, as it does
for all who truly
Believe