As regional NSW prepared for Santa to land his sleigh in the dust, something completely different was descending on Gunnedah from the skies.
Like Marty McFly in the DeLorean time machine, a small gaggle of members of parliament arrived to hold a parliamentary inquiry hearing into the future of koalas.
I've had quite a lot to do with koalas in Gunnedah over the years as part of Project Koala Gunnedah, but somehow this happening had completely escaped my radar.
I was among those nudging time in between getting a fortnight's work down in a day, stressing over presents for choosy relatives and a host of other things that make up the cyclone that is Christmas.
In the midst of this regional bustle sat a panel of MPs who were, it seemed, increasingly stunned by the evidence before them.
In front of the panel sat a small bunch of koala warriors who have battled over the years to make a difference. These people have sung the koala's song across the Great Divide, where it seems to have dispersed unheard among the trees.
There was Martine Moran, who with her husband Tony has cared for hundreds, if not thousands, of sick and injured koalas, finding leaves daily, dressing their wounds, releasing them back to heaven knows what fate. There was koala expert John Lemon, who said he believed estimates of the decimation of the local koala population at 50 per cent were likely to be wrong - it was more like 75 per cent.
And there was researcher Dr Matthew Crowther who spoke passionately about the threats to koalas - including the devastating impact the high incidence of chlamydia can have on breeding.
All 12 talked of the disappearing population, the increasing threats of heat, drought, loss of habitat, traffic, dogs and disease.
The sad tales of few people battling against the odds to save the koala population without the assistance of government bodies prompted inquiry chair and Greens politician Cate Faehrmann to ask, "is there any hope?".
Yes, all experts said. There was hope - with apparent surprise at the question, having just continued on for years without anyone interested enough to ask the question.
Introduce policies to maintain and grow habitat, reduce the amount of water taken from rivers, and - in case the worst happens - have a captive breeding program.
It was a sobering moment of honesty before we all returned to our Christmas tasks.
Let's hope this time the song is heard.
Marie Low is a freelance journalist and member of Project Koala Gunnedah
