George Albert Smith and the Christmas Spirit

George Albert Smith was born in 1870 in Salt Lake City. He was ordained an apostle in 1903 at age 33, became the eighth president of the Church in 1945, and died in 1951 at age 81. This reminiscence was written by his daughter, Emily Smith Stewart.

Christmas Eve, we hung our stockings in front of the fireplace in the dining room. Father always hung a huge stocking because he assured us that Santa Claus would never get all the things he wanted in just a regular stocking. That added to the gaiety of the occasion. Each year he brought his tall rubber boots from the basement, and stood one at each side of the fireplace. No matter how excited we children were, we were never permitted to go downstairs until we were washed, combed and fully dressed, then we had morning prayers and sat down to breakfast — the worst breakfast of the year, because it took so much time and seemed to hinder our getting to our stockings.

There was always something very unusual and very special down in the toe of the stocking. First we laughed and laughed over the things that Santa Claus put in father’s boots — coal, kindlings, and vegetables. Then we were offended because we thought Santa Claus was not very kind to father who was always so generous with everyone else. We always brought something very special the next day to make up for the slight Santa Claus had made.

After our mirth and merriment had subsided, father took us with him to make the rounds of the forgotten friends that he habitually visited on Christmas. Once we went down a long long alley in the middle of a city block where there were some very poor houses. We opened the door of one tiny home and there on the bed lay an old lady very sad and alone. As we came in, tears ran down her cheeks. She reached over to take hold of father’s hands and said, “I am grateful to you for coming, because if you hadn’t come, I would have had no Christmas at all. No one else had remembered me.” We thoroughly enjoyed this part of the day.