When Sammy Woke Up One Morning

By Pamela Ueckerman

When Sammy woke up one morning,
He discovered a note by his bed,
“I’m travelling up to the North Pole,
To meet the toy maker,” it said.

“We’ve been together forever,”
The letter continued to say,
“And now you no longer need me,
I’ve decided to go away.”

“I know that you got me for Christmas,
That I was left under the tree,
I came through the chimney with Santa,
As he was the one who made me.”

“So I’m leaving this morning to meet him,
Don’t know if I’ll ever be back,
But watch out for something this Christmas,
That Santa may bring in his sack.”

The signature down at the bottom,
Was hurriedly scribbled in blue,
The name that it spelled out so simply,
Was that of his teddy bear Boo.

Now Sammy was quivering sadly,
He’d miss his favourite friend,
The bond that he had with his teddy,
Had come to a curious end.

Meanwhile in Sammy’s back garden,
Our brave bear was not far at all,
He’d been smuggled outside with the laundry,
But couldn’t climb over the wall.

He thought that his travels were over,
He hung his poor head in despair,
When at once a grey pigeon named Peter,
Hoisted him into the air.

They travelled for hours and hours,
Over mountain and desert and sea,
When at last the pigeon released him,
And Boo landed BUMP in a tree.

He looked all around and below him,
He didn’t know how far he’d come,
But the coldness was making him shiver,
And his poor little nose was quite numb.

He spotted an eagle close by him,
And begged for a ride to go forth,
A ship took him into the Arctic,
And from there on it wasn’t far north.

As Christmas grew nearer and nearer,
So Boo journeyed on to the end,
And Sammy grew yet more excited,
To learn what he’d get from his friend.

As dawn broke on Christmas Day morning,
Sammy could not wait to see,
Had Boo Bear succeeded his mission?
What would there be under the tree?

But just then he noticed his stocking,
Right there at the end of his bed,
And poking right out of the top,
Was a tattered teddy bear head.

The head was dirty and soggy,
And matted with leaves and mud too,
But Sammy jumped up in amazement,
For that teddy bear head was his Boo!

With care he took Boo from the stocking,
And gently he shook off some dirt,
Then Sammy saw something intriguing,
A letter was pinned to Boo’s shirt!

Sammy unpinned it with caution,
And opened it there on the bed,
The note was signed “Boo” at the bottom,
And following is what it said:

“I’ve travelled the world to the Arctic,
And what an adventure I’ve had,
I met with the reindeer and Santa,
But now that I’m home I’m quite glad.”

Well Sammy could not quite believe it,
The bear was back home safe and well,
And as to all of Boo’s secrets,
Sadly the bear wouldn’t tell.

Now Boo and the boy are quite happy,
They travel around having fun,
And as for the bear and his letters,
Since then there hasn’t been one.