I'm going to make this as simple as I can.
Growing up, the magic of Santa was part of what made Christmas so special to me. Because of my parents, I also knew that we were celebrating the birth of Jesus and what that meant for humanity and what that meant for us. Even as children, "Jesus was sent to love us and take away our sins," was easy enough to understand. For us, Jesus was serious. Santa was magical.
I'm 32 years old and only just now beginning to scrape the tip of the iceberg about the different kind of magic that comes with knowing and having a relationship with Jesus Christ. I cannot possibly expect my baby boy to understand that. We will read the story to him of what we believe to be the true reason we celebrate Christmas every year, and reinforce those values year-round.
But there will also be magic. There will be awe and wonder. There will be stories of selflessness and giving because we love, not because we are good.
There will be Santa.
If my child learns that Santa is not real (either from us, in a gentle way, or from some jerk kid who ruins it for him long before I'm ready to let that part of his innocence be taken away) and then begins to question everything he is told, I see that as a good thing.
I
want him to ask questions. I
want him to understand
why he believes what he does and
why we act the way we do based on those beliefs.
If he asks why Santa doesn't come to those who are in lower economic stations, we will hopefully say things like "Baby,
we helped Santa those years, when we were selfless and mindful of others and gave to those we could help."
But the magic and awe and wonder I already see in his eyes...whether it's because he can't believe he has these things called
feet attached to his legs or because the lights and sparkles of our tree are just too beautiful for him to comprehend...I want to see that for many years.
Then, as he grows older and begins to question things and discover the love that Jesus has for him on a more mature level, and how we can see and
emulate Jesus all around us, I look so very forward to seeing a
new light in his eyes each time a new realization creates a spark that wasn't there before.
There are so many allegories of faith and love and the supernatural and magical in the belief in Santa and the relationship with Christ, and those parallels can be seen in one of my very favorite pieces of writing: the famous editorial, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" (emphasis mine):
"DEAR
EDITOR: I am 8 years old.
"Some of my little friends say there is no
Santa Claus.
"Papa says, 'If you see it in THE SUN it's
so.'
"Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa
Claus?
"VIRGINIA
O'HANLON.
"115 WEST NINETY-FIFTH STREET."
VIRGINIA,
your little friends are wrong. They have been
affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age.
They do not believe except they see. They
think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible
by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether
they be men's or children's, are little. In this
great universe of ours man is a mere insect, an
ant, in his intellect, as compared with the boundless
world about him, as measured by the intelligence
capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.
Yes,
VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly
as love and generosity and devotion exist, and
you know that they abound and give to your life
its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would
be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It
would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS.
There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry,
no romance to make tolerable this existence. We
should have no enjoyment, except in sense and
sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills
the world would be extinguished.
Not
believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not
believe in fairies! You might get your papa to
hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas
Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if they did
not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that
prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no
sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real
things in the world are those that neither children
nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing
on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof
that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or
imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable
in the world.
You
may tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes
the noise inside, but there is a veil covering
the unseen world which not the strongest man,
nor even the united strength of all the strongest
men that ever lived, could tear apart. Only faith,
fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that
curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty
and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, VIRGINIA,
in all this world there is nothing else real and
abiding.
No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives,
and he lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia,
nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, he
will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.
I support 100% the choice of other parents and families to not implement the tradition of Santa Claus into their holiday traditions. However, for my husband and me, this was not even a discussion. We both remember the magic and the joy, and we cannot wait to experience it on the other side of the coin now as parents.
Z, may you always know the magic of the holiday season, whether it's because of the anticipation of Santa Claus or because of the wonderful heaviness of the knowledge of Christ -- God's ultimate gift to us -- that will bring you to your knees in wonder and gratitude.
