[ WP ] You walk up to a beggar to give him a dollar bill when he looks directly into your eyes . You realize the old man is Santa Claus .

It was a simple request, but I was annoyed. I had to go out of my way on my walk home to go to the store and get eggnog. I don ’ t even like eggnog. I have to go an extra five block, and I hate this part of town. It ’ s funny how much difference there is between here and where I live less than half a mile away. It ’ s bad enough that I had to work a full day on Christmas Eve; I just have to get this over with. I love my wife, I love my new son, but it ’ s cold, and I don ’ t like eggnog. 
 
 “ Excuse me, sir. ” I heard a voice say. I know it came from below me and I cringed. I wanted to ignore it, but I slowed to a shuffle and glanced down. I saw the dirty brown coat sprinkled with snow and I saw the sign. It said, “ Ho Ho Homeless, something for the helpless? ” I stopped as I read it, smiled then frowned. He continued, “ May I have a dollar sir? ” I wondered what he would do with it if I gave him one, or a few. He certainly didn ’ t look like he needed any food. He was quite portly, and I would be surprised if he could get up without help. 
 
 I don ’ t know what came over me, I usually just keep walking, but I caught a glimpse of his eyes from below his hood, and a twinkle seemed to shine brightly off of rosy cheeks. 
 
 “ It ’ s Christmas you know, ” I said without thinking, “ don ’ t you have any family to be with? ” It was rude I realized right after I said it. But he didn ’ t seem to be bothered by the question. He tilted his head further up to look at me, raised his hands and swept the hood from his head. His hair was brilliantly white and complimented fully by the beard that had seemed to come out of nowhere. I was not sure anymore what upon him was hair or the snow that slowly began to fall. 
 
 “ Oh I have family, ” he said with a smile, “ The entirety of humanity is my family, and I feel quite close to them when I ’ m out here. I can ’ t be with them all the time, in fact far less than I would like. I cherish the time I get to be with my brothers and sisters. ” 
 
 I was taken aback. This was the most I ’ ve ever spoken to a homeless person before, and to get such an answer to my question was unexpected. I thought for what seemed like a very long time, but he looked up at me with patience and intense interest. I had to make this good. 
 
 “ Why would you choose to be out in the cold? ” It wasn ’ t that good. 
 “ Ho, he he, ha, ahh this isn ’ t cold at all for me. ” He replied, and it was true, the coat he wore looked more like it was for show than warmth. “ What are you doing here, you live on the other side of town don ’ t you? ” 
 
 He was right, I didn ’ t look like I belonged in this part of town. “ I ’ m picking up some eggnog from the store, it ’ s a special kind I guess, and I need to come over here to get it. ” I continued, “ What are you doing here if you have family to be with? ” 
 
 “ When I work, ” the man explained, “ I am neck deep in paperwork. I see many people, but it ’ s easy to lose touch with humanity. I may be busy, but it ’ s nice to come out here and see what real good looks like once in awhile. I ’ m happy to say that I ’ m never disappointed. ” 
 
 I shuffled a bit and put my hand in my pocket. I had a five dollar bill and I presented it to him. He waved it off and explained, “ To stop and talk to me this night is far more valuable to me than money, and your intention to be so kind warms my heart. ” He smiled and began shuffling around with his things. Packing to move on to a more populated spot I imagined. 
 
 “ Would you like to come over to my house for dinner? ” The words were out of my mouth before I had the chance to think, but when I did process what I said, I realized I meant it. From the bottom of my heart I wished that he would take me up on my offer. He stood up so quickly and easily that I thought he would bound the building we were next to. 
 
 He placed his hand on my shoulder, and with the most earnest look in his eyes responded, “ Thank you so very much for the invitation. If it were any other night I would be delighted, but I am afraid I have a very pressing engagement I must attend to tonight. ” I must have looked disappointed because he quickly added, “ There ’ s a good chance I ’ ll stop by later though. ” I smiled, and it felt like the most genuine smile I ’ ve had since my son was born. I heard a bell ring in the distance and as I turned to look I saw a deer walk across the street and turn the corner towards the park. I ’ ve lived in the city a long time and I ’ ve never seen any wildlife aside from the occasional raccoon. 
 
 “ Ah, my ride is here ” he said. We both chuckled as he collected his belongings. There wasn ’ t much, a blanket, the sign, and what looked like the remnants of a quart of milk. With hands all full he began to walk away, turning before he went. “ I wish you and your new family, Mary and Joey a very merry Christmas. ” I said it back to him quickly, with a smile and watched as he turned the corner towards the park. I heard in the distance carolers and started humming along and began the long walk home. I didn ’ t even mind now for some reason. The cold didn ’ t bite so hard and the snow was soft and fluffy. I wanted to build a snowman, go sledding, drink hot cocoa and be with my family. I couldn ’ t wait to share those things with Joey when he was older. “ With Joey, ” I said to myself then realized. I had never given that man my family members names. How could he know that? I kept walking and thinking that perhaps I had, maybe I just forgot from it being such a surprise encounter. 
 
 I made it home at a brisk pace and was happy to shake off my jacket, feel the warmth of being inside, and see the lights of the Christmas tree my wife decorated. When I heard her voice though I was filled with dread. “ Hi honey, welcome home! ” She called from the kitchen. At that moment I realized I had forgotten the eggnog. The entire reason I had gone out of my way, and I had forgotten all about it. I pulled off my bag morosely and slid it to the ground. As it hit though, it made an odd noise. A sloshing hollow sort of noise. I opened it up to see what it was and found by some miracle a completely new very cold carton of eggnog. As I picked it up, I noticed a note had been placed upon it and in impeccable script was the message, “ Help for the helpless. ” 

