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Funny Christmas story: the sleigh that would not go
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Every year, a few days before Christmas, Father Christmas takes his sleigh on a test run. Just a little loop around the North Pole, to check that everything works.
This year, the elves had polished the sleigh until it shone. The runners were waxed. The bells were tied on. The reindeer stood in a neat row, ready to go.
Father Christmas climbed in and picked up the reins.
"Ready, everyone?" he called. "Off we go!"
The reindeer pulled.
The sleigh did not move.
Pull harder
"Hmm," said Father Christmas. "Pull a little harder, my dears."
The reindeer pulled harder. Their hooves scraped the snow. Their cheeks puffed out.
The sleigh did not move. Not one bit.
"Perhaps it's stuck in the snow," said Pip the elf. The elves fetched shovels and dug all around the runners. Dig, dig, dig.
"Try again!"
The reindeer pulled. The sleigh did not move.
Everybody helps
"I know," said a tall elf. "We'll all push from the back."
Ten elves lined up behind the sleigh. "One, two, three... PUSH!"
They pushed until their faces turned pink. One elf's hat fell off. Another elf slipped and sat down in the snow.
The sleigh did not move.
Then Bruno the polar bear came padding by. "Can I help?" he asked.
Bruno put his big paws on the back of the sleigh and pushed. The elves pushed. The reindeer pulled.
The sleigh creaked. It groaned. It wobbled.
But it did not move.
What could it be?
Everyone sat down in the snow, out of breath.
"This has never happened before," said Father Christmas, scratching his beard. "Is it too cold? Is it too heavy? Is it feeling grumpy?"
Pip walked slowly all the way around the sleigh. He looked at the runners. He looked at the bells. He looked at the seat.
Then he crouched down and looked underneath.
And he started to laugh.
The reason
"Father Christmas," giggled Pip, "come and look."
Father Christmas got down on his hands and knees in the snow and peered under the sleigh.
There, tied to the back of the sleigh with a thick rope, was the old wooden post that the elves used to park it. Nobody had untied it.
For a moment, everyone was very quiet.
Then Father Christmas began to laugh. A big, deep, rumbling laugh that made the snow slide off the stable roof. The elves laughed. Bruno laughed. Even the reindeer seemed to be smiling.
"All that pulling," laughed Father Christmas. "All that pushing! And all we had to do was untie a knot!"
Off at last
Pip untied the rope.
"Ready?" called Father Christmas. "Off we go!"
The reindeer pulled. The bells jingled. And the sleigh shot forwards so fast that Father Christmas's hat nearly flew off.
Up, up, up they went, into the clear blue sky. Once around the North Pole, over the workshop, over the lake, and back down again.
"Perfect," said Father Christmas as they landed. "Everything works."
Then he winked at Pip. "And from now on," he said, "the first thing on my list is: check the rope."
Things to talk about
- What did everyone try to make the sleigh move?
- Why wouldn't the sleigh go?
- Have you ever tried really hard at something, and then found an easy answer?
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