Little kid recites ""Twas The Night Before Christmas"" For the grade school Christmas Pageant the teacher had one of the students memorize 'Twas the Night Before Christmas'. Unfortunately, the child fell sick the evening of the Pageant. But another kid stepped forward at the last moment and said he could do the recital. His performance proved to be a show stopper as he recited: ""More rapid than eagles his curses they came, And he whistled and shouted and called them bad names!""