Is Santa Claus Real?
I still remember being in 5th grade and arguing with my friend that Santa was REAL!
When one of my best friends confirmed the other kid's story, I felt humiliated. And confused. But, if Santa wasn't real, then WHO put all those gifts under our tree? Could it really be my parents?
The part I don't remember, was how my confusion and upset was resolved. Christmas went on as it always had, and our family always had Santa Claus come.
One of my favorite Christmas memories, probably from a few years later, was 'playing' Santa Claus.
Mom would find a family in need from the local
school and we would shop for the kids. I remember wrapping their gifts and
leaving them at the door step. I remember driving through the neighborhood and having my mom drop us off with the big box, and parking a few houses down. We sneaked up onto the grass and then the porch and knocked, quickly running so that we would not be seen. I remember imagining what the kids would do when
they opened their gifts and saw the toys inside. How fun that was. Such a
spirit of excitement. That year, Santa Claus did come to that family's home.
I hear about some families that don't include Santa Claus in their celebrations. I also hear about plenty of families who focus ALL on Santa Claus and nothing else. When I started my own family, I pondered how to approach this topic. I wanted my children to be able to join in the fun, but I didn't want Santa Claus to be THE focus of Christmas. So, I asked myself . . .
Who is the TRUE Santa Claus? Is it Mom and Dad? Is it those who give service? Is there a deeper meaning to the personage of Santa? Should he be a part of Christmas? (no judgement here... just food for thought).
This is what WE have decided to do:
We let our kids have the magic. We go see Santa Claus, write letters and lists, and even received letters from Santa one year. (That was fun. I put them in the mail box and then asked my son to get the mail. They had little North Pole stamps on them in the return address area on the envelopes. One for each child! Fun!)
When the time is right we tell them about the TRUE Santa Claus. We point out the reality...
even
though the person, Santa Claus isn’t ‘real,’ the idea of Santa Claus is.We point out the 'Santa Clauses' all around us: someone
who had gone into Target and paid off $2000 worth of layaway items,
neighbors taking around a dressed up Santa with boxes of food and gifts for families in need. The list goes on and on... there are MANY 'Santa Clauses' all around us.
Think about Santa Claus:
He’s Jolly.
He gives unconditionally to all.
He loves
everyone.
He knows your name!
He sees you when you’re sleeping and knows when
you’re awake.
He keeps a nice list and a naughty list. But did you ever really
see anyone receive coal?
He receives your lists of wants and dreams and
fulfills them, even if really you don’t deserve them.
He wears red and white.
He can touch each of us all around the world during the same night.
Wow… who is Santa a symbol for? In my home,
we teach that he is a symbol of Christ himself.
To us the True Santa Claus is the Spirit of Christmas, of giving without expectation of return, of giving anonymously, of doing good, of loving unconditionally. The idea of the True Santa Claus points us to Christ.
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