CAMPING IN THE SNOW

Very early snow had fallen down. Hoss and Little Joe Cartwright noticed that. They had gotten the idea to go camping in the wood. Their father Ben Cartwright had given them permission and so they had gone away.

“Joe, I hope that this idea of yours goes the right way this time”, Hoss said on the way.

“Hoss, it was my idea to go camping so it goes right!”, reacted his brother.

“We have taken along enough food anyway”, was the answer van Hoss.

Finally they had reached their camping site. The tent got put up and Hoss prepared the meal.

For a second Joe looked at the sky and said then, “Hoss, it is a clear sky so tomorrow we can go hunting.”

Hoss looked up and replied, “I hope that you are right.”

When the brothers went to sleep there was no yet but that night the white stuff came down. The brothers woke up when it was stone-cold. Hoss noticed it as first.

“Dadburnit Little Joe, why have you scattered out your pillow so?”, he asked indignant.

His brother woke up and looked amazed around him.

“I haven’t done anything”, he reacted fierce.

Directly he got a snow ball against him. Of course he threw one back. This continued for a while until they heard a strange noise. Both got their rifles and they went to lie on the ground.

What they saw then didn’t happen in their naughtiest dreams. In their view Santa rode with his 7 reindeers.

He sang, “Walking in a winter wonderland.”

The brothers still had their rifles pointed at Santa and thought that they were dreaming.

“Joe, that is Santa though?”, Hoss asked for the security.

“That certainly is Santa. But what is he doing here? It is yet November. He is a month too early”, replied Little Joe.

Though they didn’t dare to come any closer but Santa didn’t come to them either.

Finally Santa said, “Ho ho ho.”

Then he had disappeared as sudden as he had appeared. Hoss and Little Joe looked at each other amazed.

“Hoss, this wood is really not safe to go camping. We go home and this at once”, said Little Joe.

“For this time I agree with you”, said Hoss.

Quickly they packed their things and in a hurry-scurry they rode back home.

Their older brother Adam saw them coming and started to smile.

“Are you back already? Probably got a snow stroke?”, he asked sarcastic.

Hoss and Little Joe looked at each other and decided to tell an excuse.

“It was too cold to go camping in the wood”, told Little Joe.

That they had seen Santa they rather kept for themselves. They knew how Adam could be with his remarks.

Since then Hoss and Little Joe let it out of their heads to go camping in the cold months and certainly not in the wood.