Christmas Frolicking
Nicholas, good saint, jolly Saint Nicholas,
Not to remember you, dear, were ridiculous;
You who have busily labored to tickle us.
Santa Claus, tenderly nicknamed Santa Claus
‘Tis in your honor, we name, for no scanty case,
Jollities papa and mama and aunty cause!
Hurrying, glad to your green tree hurrying,
Just like a lot full of lambkins scurrying;
Jolly old saint, we can run without worrying.
Merrily tripping it, oh, how merrily!
Round and around we’ll dance, and verily
Pity it were to lag or go wearily.
Jollity, genuine twittering jollity,
Flourishes best about cedar and holly tree,
Both bearing fruit of the very same quality
Rollicking, every one noisily rollicking,
Little ones, big ones, all go frolicking;
Where’s the “lord of misrule” for our jolly king?
Pattering, little feet daintily pattering,
Big feet following, rambling, scattering,
This is the figure we dance in our latter ring.
Round again! revelers, just one round again,
Trip, skip, limber toes, stiff toes, bound again!
At your next holly tree we will be found again.
- Title
- Christmas Frolicking
- Alternative Title
- Nicholas, good saint, jolly Saint Nicholas
- Creator
-
George Shepard Burleigh
- Bibliographic Citation
- George S. Burleigh Papers, 1825-1902. John Hay Library, Brown University. Large Scrapbook 246
- Christmas Frolics and Other Poems. New York: McLoughlin Brothers, 1904, p. 1-2
- Date
- Date tbd
- Subject
- Christmas
- Pastimes
- note
- Playfully illustrated in the edition in the Large Scrapbook.
- The rhymes in the first stanza are genuinely funny, in a dad-joke style
- Media
-
Christmas Frolicking