GOODBYE Santa……….Thank You!

“Goodbye, Santa……goodbye…..thank you for coming….have a safe trip back to the North Pole”…..the Irishman bellowed in the vestibule of 210 East 83rd Street. That man was my grandfather and the vestibule he was in was the apartment building that I grew up in along with my aunt, cousins, my Uncle John and my parents and sister. Now this Christmas day ritual went on for years. My Mom would tell me that if we hurried down the four flights of stairs, we could actually meet Santa. We never made it in time….but it was ok….my grandfather actually knew Santa! The one time I asked my mother how did Nagh know Santa, she told me that they “grew up” together in Ireland. What a lucky kid I was…..I had a grandfather who knew Santa AND Santa was Irish! Wow, I couldn’t have been more proud. Eventually, there did come a Christmas where I became more concerned about our neighbors thinking that Mr. McLoughlin must be crazy….but, today, this Christmas morning, what I wouldn’t give to hear a booming Irish voice shouting”Goodbye, Santa….thanks for bringing my family presents…see you next year!”