It may have taken more than seven decades, but Santa finally came through with the items a British man wished for as a boy.
David Haylock was only 6 when he wrote a note to "Father Christmas" in 1943 and tucked it into the chimney of his family home. Last week, construction workers renovating the house discovered the note. They tracked down Haylock, now 78, with the help of neighbors and social media.
In addition to returning the note to Haylock, the construction crew also delivered items he asked for on his wish list, including a box of chalk, toy soldiers, slippers, a silk tie, a pencil box and “any little toys you have to spare.”
Haylock laughed at the items on the list.
“I think I was rather precocious in asking for a silk tie,” he told the BBC.
"I'm sure this wasn't the only one, but I can remember bending down with my mother and putting it up the chimney ... and waiting for the draft to take it up," Haylock said of the letter. Its discovery came as a huge surprise to him and his family.
“My grandchildren, they were amazed," he said. "Of course, they don’t do notes to Father Christmas. They send him an email.”
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