Ever.
My first Christmas memory is finding my presents (accidentally, of course!) and thinking, "Oh, that's where they are this year." I do not, never ever, remember believing in Santa Claus. He was persona non grata in our house growing up. Mother seemed to have a personal vendetta for the the red and white jolly little old man. Instead of Santa Claus, we did a different country's Christmas tradition every year. One year, we had clogs instead of stockings. I got to be Saint Lucia one year with the pretty white dress and poinsettia wreath in my hair (I think we left off the candles) and bring sweet rolls around to everyone in the morning. As was preached in our house: Saint Nicholas was a nice man, but in NO WAY to be associated with SANTA CLAUS that conniving mercantilistic creation of Coca-Cola (the Devil's Very Own Beverage).
That said, I still enjoyed the silly Christmas movies with Santa and Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer and I don't remember trampling on the precious beliefs of my friends. Maybe I was smug in my knowledge, but I didn't ruin it for them!
I do confess to never really liking 'Twas the Night Before Christmas. (Now The Nightmare Before Christmas is an entirely different story!)
When it came to how I was to bring up my own kids, I had a relaxed attitude towards Santa. If relatives want to give "Santa" gifts, that's fine. Just don't expect me to take the time and effort to explain who he is and what to expect. The Dude has been young enough to not really take notice of the Man with the White Beard.
Until this year.
One day last week our neighbor innocently asked him what he wanted Santa to bring him this year. He stopped pedaling, looked up at her, and asked, "Who's Santa?" She turned an incredulous look on me, and I... started explaining.
Later, the Dude asked me about this Santa character, and I knew the Moment of Decision had come whether to impale myself on the North Pole or not. With a bit of mom-istic license, I told him about St. Nicholas being a man who was trying to be like Jesus and treat the children nicely (the Dude likes this story a lot right now), and so he gave presents to them. He died a long time ago, but people like to remember him as Santa Claus. How long that explanation will last, time will tell. At least it got us through one Christmas Party!
I do lament the secularization and commercialization of Christmas. The tradition of the Christchild (Christkindlein - eventually Kris Kringle) giving presents is a sad one to have lost. In (mild) protest, I don't think I'll be perpetuating a belief of Santa in our home.
So, Santa, St. Nick, Kris Kringle: you are welcome in my home, but you must be de-deified to enter. There's really only room for one Deity this Holiday.
6 comments:
I think your explanation to The Dude was perfect. Although I still reserve the right to give him Christmas presents from Santa Claus!
I honestly don't ever really remember "believing" in Santa Clause as a real, living person. We usually got one gift from Santa every Christmas, but neither Mr. Fob or I has given our children gifts from Santa. We feel uncomfortable doing that. She's also given people the blank stare when they ask what she's getting from him. Our explanation is similar: some people believe that he brings them presents. She's started saying things like "santa's not in this world, like Dora", so she gets it.
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I actually think losing the tradition of the Christ child giving presents is an excellent one to have lost. Because when the kid discovers that it's just his parents-- It just seems too closely connected to healthy faith to me.
I have no love left for Santa, but I can't justify purposefully denying my kid the belief in Santa when somehow he came up with it all on his own. (He's always surprising us with the things he knows. Yesterday he started talking about Tom Thumb. We have never told him about Tom Thumb.) (He also somehow knows Santa is giving him a kitchen for Christmas.)
I find the whole Santa thing horribly false--no matter what we tell the Virginia things of the world. But my moral standing also thinks it's mean to disabuse kids of something that gives them pleasure.
We'll see where I am on this question next year.
foxyj: i'm glad to know i'm not alone in the world! =)
Th: i see your point about getting things too mixed up with the christchild. i don't think stomping all over something the kid wants to believe in is very nice, either. i don't mind if the Dude chooses to believe in santa. i'm just not going to encourage or perpetuate that belief.
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Me neither.
I hope my parents don't disown me.
I always remembered mom's rants about Santa and how she wasn't going to "lie" to us kids. But I really don't remember you dressing up and bringing us rolls at any point, or the whole "Chrismas around the world" thing :).
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