So here is one that may not be that popular, but I am going to talk about our approach to CHRISTmas, or more specifically, Santa. We choose to tell the kiddos that it is a story, like so many others they love, but that is all… and it is fine to enjoy the story through books, movies, etc.
So…. first off this really is your choice. Do what you feel is right.
That being said, as a fair warning, if you do choose to run with the Santa thing here are some sample parenting responses you should have locked and loaded:
– “Sorry Mary Ann, but Santa just doesn’t visit poor families. That is just the way it is. Have a candy cane.”
– “Yes Timmy, your cousin did receive about $3,000 worth of gifts at his home despite all signs pointing to the coal to toys ratio being much higher, but “c‘est la vie”
– “Wow, good point Bartholomew, we would be wasting our money on this Angel Tree or Foster Child gift… let’s send a letter to the north pole instead. Great catch!”
– “Listen little Jill, you need to ignore those feelings of fear and anxiety and climb on the lap of that middle aged man at the mall with a costume on who smells of bourbon. It’s frickin Christmas!”
Of course I am kidding around……….. well, at least I am only a bit serious…….. well… anyway.
I really just share our approach because this tends to be something parents don’t even think to think about. It is just a part of our culture. Tons of awesome parents do the Santa thing. Many love the magic and wonder of it. I just want to make sure it is something you realize there are multiple options for and make a conscious decision on.
Here are a few points from our approach:
1) We place a lot of value in honesty from our kiddos. It is nice not having a huge direct lie we have told them for years. “So… all of that spiritual stuff we told you is totally true… it is just this one tiny thing we (your most trusted peeps) and movies and books and strangers have been lying about for years. Have a candy cane”.
2) KEY POINT: I can tell you without a doubt our kiddos enjoy this season more than you can imagine. As much as any kiddo you have ever met.
3) The whole Santa story is really not great. Many people already have trouble breaking out of this rewards based culture or view of life events. Also, kids should not be trained to behave for awards, but because it is the right thing to do… it is a part of who they are… their true selves.
4) It helps focus on the real meaning of CHRISTmas. That can be a difficult thing in our culture by the way…
Some difficulties from our approach:
1) Some family may flippity flip on you about this or think you have lost your overly religious ever-loving mind. Not as many as you think, but some may… some may.
2) It is not tough to do, but you have to train your kiddos not to tell other kiddos………….. about the boldfaced, society-level lie (sorry, couldn’t help it… I tried not to write that last part. I really did.)
3) You have to have kiddos ready for the frequent occurrence of strangers that ask them if Santa is bringing them lots of toys
Hope this at least gets the conversation started. Do what you fell is right. Like everything, follow the Holy Spirit. Enjoy this season… it is wonderful. God is crazy good and the nativity is the start of the main act of the most important event that ever happened.