Santa

We don't "do Santa" as it is traditionally done in many homes. It's not a legalistic thing at all, but a very practical one. In thinking about what I wanted Christmas to be in our family and what I did not, Santa just didn't make the cut.

I have absolutely no problem with Santa in stories, movies, and the like. I enjoy those things with my kids as I would enjoy any other fictional story during the year. I don't tell my children that Santa isn't real, not until they ask, anyway.

I just never tell them that he is.

I have taught them about the historical account of St. Nicholas who is a worthy historical figure because of his kind and charitable acts toward the poor. Yet honestly, I see no resemblance between him and today's Santa.

Next to Linus' monologue on Charlie Brown, my next most cherished Christmas television quote is the following...

"And he puzzled three hours, till his puzzler was sore.

Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before!

“Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store.

Maybe Christmas … perhaps … means a little bit more!”

Many of us appreciate the truth that resounds from that quote. Some of us, like myself, even tear up a little after reading it or hearing it each year.

Practically, if I want to teach my kids that Jesus is the reason for the season and the time spent with loved ones and loving others are the things that we should focus on most, the Santa facade would be completely counterproductive. So we don't.

It just helps to keep our focus where it belongs.

Other reasons are as follows...

- Jesus, who already has enough competition during this season and every other time of the year.  I think of the fact that every time I would be mentioning Santa, I could be reminding them of the real reason for the season. I don't want to throw away those opportunities.

-It's lying and I don't lie to my children, not about the hard things, the easy things, or anything else in between.

-I don't want the god of materialism to reign in my home during any time of the year. To me, Santa is completely equivalent to that.

-One of the things that bothers me most is hearing adults say to children that they'd better be good because Santa is watching. That's a total lie. There are kids all over the world who are being good and who get nothing for Christmas, while there are children who have been anything but good getting rooms full of presents that they've never learned to appreciate. For that reason, I could never utter those words to my children.

My children enjoy presents just like anybody else's and I LOVE being able to spoil them this one time of year.

I'm thankful though, that even if we didn't have any of it, we have Jesus, and He is enough.