It's that time of year again. Time to spend too much money, drink too much eggnog, eat too many Christmas cookies, and get so sick of Christmas music that it'll take a year before we'll want to hear it again. Is there a more perfect time of year to share Christmas Urban Legends? I think not! So, grab yourself some rum-spiked eggnog and turn on the Christmas tunes and settle back for a Christmas read. Who knows? Maybe you'll find them interesting enough to share with your family. Maybe you could start a new Christmas tradition of reading urban legends around the Yuletide fire. Stranger things have happened.

1. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was created for Montgomery Ward department stores.

We've heard the famous story, about the special little reindeer that could. He was supposedly the most famous reindeer of all, according to the song. His tale is one of triumph over persecution and injustice and has inspired and entertained many people over the years. But could it be that one of our most beloved Christmas tales began as nothing more than a marketing ploy? Could corporate America be so cruel, so callus, as to mislead us all in such a way? Indeed, it could. And it did.

Back in 1939, Montgomery Ward copywriter Robert L. May wrote the story of Rudolph for a children's booklet which was to be a give-away item during the holidays. Drawing in part from his own childhood, and from the story "The Ugly Duckling", Mr. May created the lovely story about Rudolph, the underdog reindeer who saved the day. Unfortunately for Mr. May, Montgomery Ward held the copywrite and although the story became wildly popular, Robert L. May received no royalties.

But in 1947, he was able to convince Montgomery Ward to turn the copywrite over to him, and with the birth of the famous song about Rudolph in 1949 and the Christmas special narrated by Burl Ives in 1964, Robert L. May's financial success was assured.

It's kinda nice to know that even though the story was originally created as a marketing gimmick for a large corporation, in the end, the underdog was rewarded for his efforts, after all.

2. A United States serviceman wrote a poem about a lonely soldier on Christmas Eve.

The email message reads like this:

A Marine stationed in Okinawa Japan wrote this poem. The following is his request. I think it is reasonable . . . PLEASE. Would you do me a thoughtful favor of sending this poem to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S. service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities.

Twas the night before Christmas, he lived all alone,
In a one bedroom house made of plaster & stone.
I had come down the chimney with presents to give
And to see just who in this home did live.

I looked all about a strange sight I did see,
No tinsel, no presents, not even a tree.
No stocking by the fire, just boots filled with sand,
On the wall hung pictures of far distant lands.

With medals and badges, awards of all kind
A sober thought came through my mind.
For this house was different, so dark and dreary,
I knew I had found the home of a soldier, once I could see clearly.

I heard stories about them, I had to see more
So I walked down the hall and pushed open the door.
And there he lay sleeping silent alone,
Curled up on the floor in his one bedroom home.

His face so gentle, his room in such disorder,
Not how I pictured a United States soldier.
Was this the hero of whom I’d just read?
Curled up in his poncho, a floor for his bed?

His head was clean shaven, his weathered face tan,
I soon understood this was more than a man.
For I realized the families that I saw that night
Owed their lives to these men who were willing to fight.

Soon ‘round the world, the children would play,
And grownups would celebrate on a bright Christmas day.
They all enjoyed freedom each month of the year,
Because of soldiers like this one lying here.

I couldn’t help wonder how many lay alone
On a cold Christmas Eve in a land far from home.
Just the very thought brought a tear to my eye,
I dropped to my knees and started to cry.

The soldier awakened and I heard a rough voice,
"Santa don’t cry, this life is my choice;
I fight for freedom, I don’t ask for more,
my life is my God, my country, my Corps."

With that he rolled over and drifted off into sleep,
I couldn’t control it, I continued to weep.
I watched him for hours, so silent and still,
I noticed he shivered from the cold night’s chill.

So I took off my jacket, the one made of red,
And I covered this Soldier from his toes to his head.
And I put on his T-shirt of gray and black,
With an eagle and an Army patch embroidered on back.

And although it barely fit me, I began to swell with pride,
And for a shining moment, I was United States Army deep inside.
I didn’t want to leave him on that cold dark night,
This guardian of honor so willing to fight.

Then the soldier rolled over, whispered with a voice so clean and pure,
"Carry on Santa, it’s Christmas Day, all is secure."
One look at my watch, and I knew he was right,
Merry Christmas my friend, and to all a good night!

According to Snopes.com, the author of this poem is Lance Corporal James M. Schmidt, a Marine, who wrote it in 1986. Since then, it has been abundantly forwarded through email and, unfortunately, credited to any number of sources, depending on the political leanings of the sender. So, if this turns up in your email this year attributed to a "soldier in Iraq" or a "soldier in Afghanistan", now you know who really wrote it.

3. Poinsettia plants are poisonous.

I've believed this one for years. My grandma taught me this one as a small child. "Don't ever put those leaves in your mouth," she said, "because they can kill you." And I believed her, too, simultaneously loving the beautiful red and green plants and avoiding getting too close to them at the same time. But guess what, folks! It's not true! Are you as surprised as I was by this? According to the reading I have done, although the plant comes from a family that is known to contain several poisonous plants, the poinsettia itself is unlikely to give someone much more than an upset stomach. That is, if they ingest enough of the plant to even have that reaction, which is unlikely since the plant is said to taste absolutely horrific. For more info, click here.

There are a lot of urban legends about Christmas. This was only three of them. If you'd like to read more, click here for part two of this Christmas urban legends article. Happy Holidays!