Transcript[]
Henry the Octopus was floating around in the sea one day when his shellphone rang. It was Santa Claus ringing from the North Pole.
"Hello there Henry," booked Santa. "It'll soon be Christmas and we're going to need some help to wrap all the presents I have to deliver. Could you pop up and give us all a hand… or rather a tentacle? There's a lot to do."
"Of course I'll come," replied Henry. "With my eight tentacles I'm a champion Christmas present wrapper! I'll see you soon."
Henry put the shellphone down and began to get ready to swim to the North Pole. Just then, the SS Feathersword sailed by. "Henry, have you had a phone call from Santa?" asked Captain Feathersword. "I'm going that way. Would you like a lift?"
They sailed across the seas towards the North Pole. "I can't take the SS Feathersword any further," said the Captain, "the ice is too dangerous, but look, Santa has sent his reindeer to take you the rest of the way."
Henry climbed into the sled and snuggled under a cozy red rug. They sped over the ice and snow to Santa's workshop.
"I've got everything you need." Santa explained. "Christmas paper, scissors, ribbon, cards, a pen and some sticky tape. I'll leave you to it."
"I'll start with that rocking horse," Henry thought to himself. "It'll take a lot of paper." He held the paper with one tentacle, cut it with another, wrapped it around the rocking horse with another and used another for the sticky tape.
"I don't know how Santa and his elves manage with only two hands each," thought Henry as he began to put some dolls into their boxes. "I'm glad I can use all my eight tentacles when I need to."
"My word," he thought "a lot of people are getting sporting equipment this Christmas; baseballs bats, tennis racquets, basketballs and soccer balls… I'll wrap the, next."
The pile of wrapped presents was getting larger and larger. Henry put a card on each one so Santa would know exactly where it should be delivered.
"It looks as if lots of children have asked for books." Henry observed. "Books are the sort of present you can enjoy for such a long time… oh this looks like a good one." and he picked it up and began to read.
The book was so interesting that He ray didn't realize how the time was passing. "Oh dear," he said as he finished the story, "I didn't realize how late it was getting. I'd better get on with my work."
He piled the books into a cart and turned to the games and puzzles. "I love puzzles," thought Henry. "I'll just try a couple."
Again, the time sped by. Santa popped his head around the door to see Henry puzzling over a jigsaw. "I think you're enjoying the toys as much as the children will," chuckled Santa, "but remember the wrapping needs to be finished quite soon."
Henry set to work again, using his eight tentacles to cut and wrap and stick and tie. "It is getting late," he thought, "I'll need to work even faster if I'm to finish in time."
The elves who came in to take the presents to load on Santa's sleigh could barely keep up with Henry. "He looks like a spinning ball of color, he works so quickly," they said to each other.
The last present was loaded onto Santa's sleigh and the elves and back to the workshop to invite Henry to a special Christmas party. To their amazement all they could see was a ball of Christmas paper, sticky tape and ribbon with Henry somewhere inside.
"I was working so quickly," said Henry as the elves set him free, "that I couldn't stop wrapping even when there were no more presents to wrap and I seem to have wrapped himself!"
"Sometimes my eight tentacles don't know when to stop. Thank you for unwrapping me! And now… let's have a party!"