THE TRUTH COMES OUT

OK...I had something happen over the holidays that is so sad to me. And looking back, I'm frustrated that I am sad, because it is something that I questioned doing to begin with.

I'm talking about Santa Claus. Yes, the jolly fat man who looks darn good in red and wouldn't be near as sexy without his beard. The same man who bravely takes on international flights on nothing but a sleigh with 8....no wait....9 reindeer (that email reports say must be female...despite their names...because they have antlers at Christmas time and males don't...or some such "who cares" nonsense). The same man who amazingly is able to fit through a small hole in a roof and make fireplaces appear where none were to begin with. The same man who is able to haul AND deliver enough toys to provide to all the good little girls and boys all over the world. (I really have to thank Disney and their movie "The Santa Clause" as it REALLY cleared up a lot of questions I had regarding this REALLY old fart who flies around and breaks into homes stealing cookies and milk.)

BUT I DIGRESS.....

No, the last day of school, before Christmas break, my 8 year old son got in the FTU and had a different answer to my daily question. I asked, "How was your day?" His reply? "It was the worst day ever!"

Hmmmmm....not one to take that comment lightly, I poked and prodded and soon learned that he was laughed at by his friends because he was talking about Santa Claus. I was immediately mad at those kids, sad for my son and unsure with myself in how to handle the situation.

As a Christian, I have faced criticism from some regarding the fact that I let my kiddos believe in S.C. I have been told that once my kids discover the lie then they will no longer believe in God/Jesus/Holy Spirit. If I lied about a fat man in red, then I simply must be lying about our Savior thus lying about our salvation.

Well, I did question, within myself, the wisdom of this. I would always (quite defensively, I'm ashamed to admit) state that if this was causing so much damage, then God would surely convict me of my transgression. I would further state that I, too, believed in Santa as a child and I turned out fine. (Despite my twitch and periodic bouts of bed-wetting.) OK...now really...that had to bring a chuckle. I DON'T TWITCH!!! LOL)

BUT, when my dear son brought this up, I started to worry. What if these people were right all along? What if buying into this childhood fantasy really paved the road to hell? What if...what if...what if?

My son already knew the truth about the tooth fairy. He found out because he SAW the tooth fairy at school, then after school, saw her getting into her car, carrying her costume and slipping behind the wheel of said car with an ad pasted on the side about her "Fairy-ing" services.

We never did the Easter Bunny (simply because we couldn't stand to deface our most important religious celebration with some stupid pastel colored rabbit that delivers eggs, jelly beans and chocolates.....) OK...now if THAT isn't ironic, I don't know what is, but we won't go further, OK?

NO, I called my son in for a private conversation. I said, "Do you remember what we talked about with the tooth fairy?" He did. I told him that Santa was like that. I told him that it was a fun make-believe story that parents told their kids. I told him that it was very common for kids to hear about Santa. I then told him that it wasn't his place to tell his brothers OR his friends.

I asked if he was angry with us. He assured me he wasn't. I told him that Santa was make-believe, but there was something that we learned about, that we couldn't see, but we TOTALLY believed in with every fiber of our being. I asked if he knew what I was talking about. He said, "Jesus." I said, "That's right, baby."

He kind of had a look...not really of disbelief, but of revelation. I think at his age, it starts to work out on its own. I mean really...how can a man of that size, do what he did for the whole world?

Kind of an ironic ending, huh? Think about THAT one!

God bless you all. And whether you "do" Santa or not...I hope you AND your family ALWAYS remember that JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON!!! Keep Christmas in your hearts, always. Don't celebrate Jesus 2 days a year. Our eternal salvation demands SO MUCH MORE!!!