The origins of Santa and the stories surrounding Christmas
are buried beneath layers of popular cultural belief. I am, of course, for the
moment, putting aside the religious meanings of Christmas – it’s not that I am
anti Christian or anything, simply that the notion of telling children the
story of Santa and his reindeer has got to be one of the greatest and most
enduring stories of all time ( next to the bible and religious teachings). It
is also the biggest lie that parents happily enthral their children with.
I mean, when you think about it the image of a big fat man
in a bright red suit sliding down your chimney (breaking into your house),
eating your food and drinking your wine and then going into a child’s bedroom
when they are asleep, ought to be pretty scary for most children. But, hey,
it’s okay for this intruder because he’s bringing a sack full of presents!
Right!
It just struck me that in other circumstances you could possiblly
write a reasonable paranormal thriller story around the notion of this superman
character who can get his reindeer to pull a sledge around the heavens and
visit every child in the world in the space of just one night!
But hey, who am I to spoil the kiddies’ fun? I believed it
myself for a fair few years… And enduring and endearing it still is –
especially when you watch their little faces light up with the wonder and the
thrill of it all because they’ve listened hard on Christmas Eve and heard the sleigh
bells…
I first posted this article a year ago but thought it worth
reminding everyone of the joy children bring and that Christmas is the time
when families come together and celebrate as one and the main focus is often
the children. In light of the recent tragic events my heart and prayers go out
to those families who have lost their beloved children (and those who lost
other family members) and it is to be hoped that this kind of tragedy
never happens again.
A very Merry Christmas to one and all and here’s hoping we
all have a peaceful 2012!
Lovely post, Pat :-) I still remember fretting in case my mum didn't let the fire go out on Christmas Eve and Santa got a burnt bum! And now we don't have a chimney, we have a special key for him to use x
ReplyDeleteI never dd the Santa stuff with my kids because I didn't want to lie to them. Besides, we tell our kids to stay away from strangers and then some parents take their kids to the mall and tell them to sit on a stranger's lap?
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Teaching children to enjoy fiction from an early age seems a good plan to me!
ReplyDeleteHappy Christmas.