Twas the Night before Christmas

PUBLISHED DEC 2008 PG

This year I my son is old enough to get into the sport of motorcycling.  I’m really excited as I’ve been looking forward to this for a very long time. 

 

We are going about it smart and taking every safety precaution to ensure that he will be a safe and responsible.  Before he can jump on that gas powered 50 cc bike of his own, he needs to show me that he can pass his Spider Man bike with training wheels on to his little brother and handle the next size petal bike without any training wheels.

 

As you know, putting toys together on Christmas Eve is pretty much tradition for the majority of Americans.  Why we wait until last minute will forever be a mystery.  At the shop they say I’m mechanically challenged, so putting his new bike together will be an interesting experience. 

 

This was a very important night for me, because I knew that if I can get him onto a bigger bike, he’ll be riding a motorcycle with me in no time.  Here’s how things happened last night.

 

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through my pad..
Everyone was sleeping except for me, a mechanically challenged dad.

Sure, the stockings were hung by the chimney with care,
I have that wrench on my workbench,  but not sure where.

My oldest was nestled all snug in his bed,
While I’m freezing my fingers off  out working in the shed.

This year’s going to be such a surprise,
It will all be worth it to see my son’s eyes.

In the back yard there arose such a clatter,
When I lost my grip the wrench flew and made the window shatter.

When my hand slipped my knuckles started to bleed..
Life would be so much easier if I would just get the directions and take time to read.

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
It was my wife in curlers and all I could say was… “Uh… Hello Dear”.

After 11 years of marriage she could read me like a book,
She said “Where are the directions?” as she just gave me that look.

As usual she was very quick to tell me what I did wrong,
But with her here I knew this fix wouldn’t take long.

With her by my side and me holding the flashlight,
I knew it would quickly come together and be put together right.

A couple turns of the wrench here a screw driver there,
All that was left was to fill it with air.

It’s amazing how my wife can do things to perfection,
Maybe I could do the same if I’d just follow directions.

Now that it’s Christmas Morning, I hope that all of you mechanically-challenged dads made it through the night.  I’m very thankful that I have a wife that humors me by letting me go it alone.  Fortunately she knows when to step in before I really get myself in a bind.

From my family to yours we wish you a very Happy Holiday season!

The writer is Operations Manager at Hot Metal Harley-Davidson located in West Mifflin and Host of “On the Road with Rocky” on 660 AM Thursdays @ 10AM.