Just in case you've been wondering, I've got Santa's direct line. I was just describing to my boys yesterday how hospitals and birth centers give out Santa's telephone number and email address in the "New Baby" packet shared with parents when all babies are born. (The number also comes with every adoption packet, and all teachers get it with along with their teaching credential.)
The best part about the holiday season is experiencing it through the eyes of children who believe. Here are some of the questions my kids have asked about Santa and the reindeer in the last few days:
Does Santa sleep?
Can Santa call us when he is busy?
How does Santa make his reindeer fly?
Does Santa go to give presents even at the North Pole?
Does Santa give presents to his elves?
How does Santa get shoes and what kind does he wear?
Do the reindeer gallop in the sky?
Do reindeer make Christmas trees?
Does Santa use paint?
Where does Santa get his sleigh?
Is there really such a thing as Rudolph the red nosed reindeer?
How do they make the toys?
How does Santa buy equipment?
Are reindeer strong?
Does Santa say "Ho Ho Ho" when he is flying too?
What snack does Santa like the best? What do the reindeer like? Would zucchini be ok?
How do reindeer get Santa's attention when they are flying?
How far can reindeer fly? Do they practice during the year?
How bad does a kid have to be to get coal?
One of the most beautiful part of the holiday season is watching how it brings adults together, even perfect strangers, to create something memorable and sweet for children.
For example yesterday at the store Sports Authority, a very kind checkout clerk and two of his managers all worked closely with me - in front of my kids - to use my credit card to put T-ball and Basketball equipment that fit my sons on a special "Santa Hold". This involved extensive paperwork and much smiling, but in the end we were able to leave all of the merchandise we had reserved in a special section of the store for Santa to come and pick up sometime this week.
Belief in forces that are mysterious, generous and even magical - surely this is an important part of the meaning of life. Until the age of science and reason, human beings had a far stronger relationship with the unknown and the divine. And while that relationship with God or unseen forces was often abused by humans in positions of real power (e.g. Spanish Inquisition, Salem Witch Trials) there is also something that we may have lost when we stopped believing that lightening and thunder were signs of displeasure from the gods... or that even the greatest of miracles could take place suddenly and without explanation.
So today, I will be calling Santa personally to ask my children's questions. I rejoice in the fact that at least for this year, Santa is something special for them to dream of, yearn for, and think about happily.
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