Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
monkey’s paw curls
Little Howard is going to have nightmares for the rest of his life
'Twas the night before Christmas, when all down the coast
Naught but a stifling silence arose;
The stockings were hung by the chimney with prayers,
That only St. Nicholas soon would be there;
The children were huddled, restless in bed;
While visions of darkness danced in their heads;
Mamma stayed quiet, her thoughts on the deep.
We had just settled into a weak fitful sleep,
When out from the sea there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my bed to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash.
The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow,
Cast a sick eldritch light on objects below,
When what to my maddening eyes it revealed,
But a creature of darkness, a nightmare made real,
With a look at the horror my mind was now broken,
And the last thing I knew was that Cthulhu had woken.
