The Little House books are full of cherished Christmases, each uniquely special. It takes a real gift to make a charming Christmas out of this paltry holiday celebration, however.
The chapter begins full of hope and joy; the spirit of Christmas is alive and well in spite of the hard toll this still-young winter has already taken on the Ingalls family. Although they’re on the last of everything — the last of the coal, the last of the flour, the last of the kerosene — they still hold out the hope that finally, the train will come.
Laura shows the spirit of Christmas more than anyone else in the family, of course, as she comes up with ideas for presents she could give to each member of the family. Has it ever bothered anyone else that everyone got something for Christmas that year except Laura? Excluding the Christmas candy, of course. But Laura knows that the joy of giving outweighs the joy of getting, so I guess in the end, she came away with the better gift after all.
The Loftus Store in De Smet still brings in tourists in droves, largely because of their brief mention in this chapter. 
Pa’s beautiful suspenders, lovingly purchased by the women who love him. (In fact, for quite a bit more than 25 cents, you can own a miniature pair of blue suspenders of your very own!) Why, I wonder, did everyone else feel the need to get Pa something for Christmas, but not any of the rest of them, except of course little Grace? Why Pa and not Ma? Laura of course has plans for gifts for everyone, but none of the rest of them know this. Why did Ma, Mary, and Carrie all think it perfectly appropriate to put all their money in to buy a gift for Pa and not the rest of the family?
It’s a good thing the mail came in time for Christmas, for there was little else to be happy about. I find it ironic that Pa announces that Mary, of all people, gets the letter, and he even hands it to her. Um, yes, let’s give the letter to the blind girl and just make everyone painfully aware of the fact that she can no longer read it…
I love Mary’s reasoning for why they should save the Youth’s Companions for Christmas. Not something logical like, “We’d best save them because we have nothing else to make the day any different from the rest” but “It will help us to learn self-denial.” Like this winter isn’t enough to teach them plenty of self-denial as it is.
Of course, even Christmas hope isn’t enough to bring a happy ending, with the long-awaited train as its reward. Instead, the final gift of the day is the onset of another blizzard.
I’m fascinated with the artistry Laura uses to describe the blizzard, tying into it all the howls of long-ago dangers — the wolves, the panther, the Indian war cries… With the last of their staple items used up, and the blizzard preventing them from getting any more, Laura recognizes just how dangerous the blizzard has become to the survival of the family within the walls of their little house.
Comments7
I haven’t finished the chapter yet, but what I noticed is how Pa took time off his work to go to the store to get the mail while Ma stayed home with the kids. If I did that, my Mum would say, why didn’t you go and get it. Still usually I am like Ma.
I’m curious as to why none of the women ever go to the store. After 6 weeks in the house, I’d want help get something at the store or at least see how Mrs. Loftus is doing. Mary is a very good person. I know I’m nothing like her. It strikes me as odd that Laura doesn’t get any gifts here, and then later, the yarns she did get she uses on Mary’s clothes rather than her own. Not to mention her wages from teaching school. Laura might have been as good a person as Mary after all.
It did always irk me that Laura got squat for Christmas. Mary and Carrie couldn’t at least get their act together and knit her a scarf from the tattered remains of Pa’s socks?
I know I’m a little late to this discussion but I’m just reading through these posts.
I think that the reason that it was so important to get Pa a gift is because he was the man of the house. He was the one who went out and provided for the family.
When I was growing up it was the general consensus that my dad get the best. The best chair, the best cut of meat, he was always served first. It was because we all knew that he worked very hard all day for us.
Leah, I agree with you. My grandmother & mother not only practiced this, but also taught me to do! It was a different time & mindset then. The men of the house must always be given preference back then, because the family truly depended on them. It was a show of appreciation and morale building.
I am very late to this; first time to find this site due to the article in the Chicago Tribune. I am a lifelong fan of the books and the history of this family; having pretty much memorizing the whole set of books. I am in Wisconsin and haven’t yet visited (but want to in this next summer) Pepin, DeSmet or Mansfield. Regarding the gift question, I marvelled at Ma’s abiity to keep the sanity and most of all STRUCTURE to the familly and routines even in the face of danger in all the books. They were a team, she and Pa. I do understand the Pa first process, though, as they all adored him and wanted to make him happy.
ok, I know this is a far stretch of the imagination but maybe Ma’s gift was from Pa in the form of 2 cans of oysters. Yes, they would all enjoy it but think of the joy Ma would have to prepare a special meal for her family on a special day.
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