So, where is Santa?

December 17, 2009

Jeremiah and I don’t do the Santa thing. It has little to do with most of the reasons Christians abolish Santa from their home, like the letters from Santa spelling Satan. Really? I don’t care about that. Our reasons are really not too terribly spiritual but more in line with our parenting style. Here are my top three reasons for not doing the whole Santa thing with the kids:

1. We are lazy. It takes a lot of work to build up the big Santa facade and keep the stories going and cohesive. Too much work for them to one day just suddenly find out and accept that Santa is pretend. If I am going to go through all of that trouble to make them believe something, they better believe it until the day they die.

2. In little kids minds, Santa sometimes equals Jesus. There minds are so limited at a young age as far as the abstract goes. So, if I tell my kids that Santa, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy, etc, etc are all real, then they suddenly someday find out they aren’t, what might that do to their concept of Jesus? He is even more abstract to a child than the others because he doesn’t leave them presents at random. So, will they wonder if He is pretend too? On more than one occasion this holiday season I have found myself saying to Breckin, “No Breckin, Santa is pretend, but Jesus is real.” because Breckin was equating the concept of Santa with Jesus in some ways. I don’t want to confuse him. I would rather just start off with them knowing where the line is drawn there. Less work for me later. Again, lazy.

3. We live in a place where some families are loaded with cash and others are not. So, when my kids get smaller gifts for Christmas and then their friend gets something completely outrageous, I don’t want them to wonder, “Why did Santa get my friend something so big but me something so small?” What do I say to that…..”Santa just likes him better. Sorry pal.” I want my kids to know that those crappy gifts they got came from their parents.

This all being said, I don’t have anything against someone celebrating the story of Santa. I think it is a very fun and magical part of the Christmas season, it just wasn’t the choice we made for our family. And when I recently told Breckin that Santa doesn’t bring presents, but Mommy and Daddy give him his Christmas presents, he said, “So, do you go up and down the fireplace?” My response, “Sometimes.”

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