A man in California called his son in New York the day before Christmas.
“I hate to ruin your day,” he said, “but I have to tell you that your mother and I are getting a divorce. Forty-five years of misery is enough.”
The son was shocked.
“What are you talking about, Dad? You can’t do this!”
“We’re tired of each other,” his father replied.
“You are not getting divorced!” the son shouted.
His father sighed.
“I’m sorry, son, but we’ve made up our minds.”
The son immediately called his sister in Chicago.
“Mom and Dad are getting divorced!”
His sister was horrified.
“What?! I’ll call Dad right now.”
Within minutes, the whole family was on the phone.
Everyone was shouting and demanding that their parents reconsider.
Finally, the father said,
“Okay, okay! We’ll think about it.”
After hanging up, he turned to his wife.
“Well, that worked better than I expected.”
She smiled.
“Do you think they’ll come home for Christmas?”
“I think so,” he replied.
Then they both laughed.
The father picked up the phone and called his son.
“Don’t worry, son. We’re not getting divorced.”
The son sighed with relief.
“Thank goodness!”
His father smiled.
“Merry Christmas!”
The son paused.
“Wait a minute… Was this whole thing just a trick to get us all home for Christmas?”
The father laughed.
“Maybe.”
The son groaned.
“You two are unbelievable.”
His mother shouted from the background,
“See you Christmas morning!”
And just like that, the family Christmas was saved.
