Po' Folks' Christmas

(Bill Anderson) There's a whole lotta people lookin' down their noses at me 'Cause I didn't come from a wealthy family I guess I learned to take it for most of the year But every December when Christmas drew near And all the other families were out spreadin' cheer We was sittin' home being po' folks. Our Christmas shopping was thumbin' through the new catalog Lookin' and a wishin' and a wantin' everything we saw Little toy trains and little toy boats And sister kept lookin' at the little girl's coats We all sat down and wrote Santa a note But Santa don't come to see po' folks. And we wadn't nothing but po' folks Po' folks livin' way in the country We never heard the jingle of the jingle bells Ho, ho, ho, we was po, po. po' And if we had Christmas well we just made it ourselves. Daddy took a hatchet and daddy chopped a pine tree down The only decorations were the ones we made or found Brother saw some holly in the rich man's yard He picked it up fast and ran home hard And mama knew he stole it but bless her heart Christmas ain't easy on po' folks And it ain't no time for whipping po' folks. I remember one Christmas it was blowing And a snowing mean Wadn't nothing in the kitchen But a few of mama's homecanned beans Some ladies from the church brought a basket of food Mama kinda smiled and she said that's good But why don't you all just take it to the folks That live down the road They ain't got as much as we do, huh Why they're just po' folks. She only kept a chicken and enough To make some homemade bread But you'd've thought we was feastin' From the blessings that my daddy said And later when kids was tucked in tight And the fire wadn't nothin' but a flickering light You oughta heard my mama sing Silent Night Cause that's what you do when you're po' folks And we wadn't nothin' but po' folks. Christmas time when you're po' folks The Lord sure must've loved us po' folks ha, ha He made a passel of us Everybody at my house was po' folks Why most of the time we was po' We couldn't even pay attention, mercy Christmas time when you're po' folks...