Yes, Virginia . . .

Yes, there is a Santa Claus.  There, I’ve said it.

He may not dress in a red suit and drive a sleigh driven by magical reindeer.  He may look more like Mommy and Daddy and drive an econo car, but he exists. “He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist.”

The world out there is ugly and cruel, a nightmare where incomprehensible things happen in front of and to our babies, so why not allow them a joyful childhood within the safety of their homes, among the people who love and understand them the most? “There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence.” How wonderful to listen to their giggles, or to watch their eyes when they open their presents or see the feast you set before them.

We can argue religion or commercialism, but who ultimately teaches that to our children?  Who controls that within our homes? 

My three grew up knowing that Christmas is about the birth of Jesus, yet they wanted to pretend and enjoy the magic of Santa Claus as well. I saw them play with the baby Jesus statue in the Nativity Set. They marched the Three Kings around the dining room looking for the star.  They’d kiss the baby and tuck him in at night, yet they also watched every Christmas special on TV and wrote letters to Santa, knowing full well they were writing them to me. 

If the gift giving gets out of hand, whose fault is it?

“Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.” Allow your children the use of their imaginations.  Believing in him is no different than playing pirates or pretending to be a princess, getting lost in a book, or cheering for our favorite sports team. Believing in him teaches them that being good and working hard will be rewarded.  Someone loves children so much he wants to bring them joy.

“How dreary would be the world if there would be no Santa Claus!” How dreary would be our world if we didn’t have the laughter and the innocence of little children.