It was the 24th of December. Things were not going well for Santa.
Only one-fourth of the orders were completed.
The elves were on strike.
Three reindeer were out on maternity leave.
Mrs. Claus had the flu.
The main power grid for the workshop was down.
He had just received a Cease and Desist order for a copyright infringement action brought by a Japanese game company.
Mattel had withdrawn its licensing agreement the day before.
The repair parts for the sleigh still were on back order.
Santa was frantic. He had no idea what he was going to do.
Then, just when everything seemed the blackest, in popped a tiny angel pulling a huge evergreen.
"Oh, Santa," the angel cried, "I just found this beautiful Christmas tree. What do you want me to do with it?"
And that is how the angel got on top of the Christmas tree.