Welcome to another installment of Christmas in quarantine,

it's Christmas Past's impromptu mini-series of indeterminate length.

So stay subscribed for one new episode every single day until things are looking better on the COVID-19 crisis.

As always, I hope that you're staying safe and healthy,

that you're following all of the common-sense guidelines and that you are treating this situation with the seriousness it deserves

and only taking your advice from trained medical professionals.

Now, today we're picking up where we left off yesterday, where I read you the first half

of Charles Dickens' The Story of the Goblins who stole the sexton.

It's part of the posthumous papers of the Pickwick Club,

also known as the Pickwick Papers,

and when we left things off,

poor Gabriel Grub found himself surrounded

by some strange otherworldly creatures

who seemed to have a plan in mind for him.

Let's see how things shake out for our friend Gabriel,

and I'll come back at the end to say goodbye.

But for now, get yourself nice and cozy because once again, it's story time.

As the goblin laughed, the sexton observed for one instant a brilliant illumination within the windows of the church, as if the whole building were lighted up.

It disappeared, the organ peeled forth a lively air, and whole troops of goblins.

The very counterpart of the first one poured into the churchyard and began playing at leapfrogs with the tombstones, never stopping for an instant

to take a breath but overing the highest among them one after the other with the most marvelous

dexterity. The first goblin was a most astonishing leaper, and none of the others could come near him.

...