It’s nearly one o’clock in the morning, and I’m attempting to write this blog for the fourth time tonight. Right now I’m smiling, because how could I not? It seemed so simple when I started. The goal was clear. Write a blog that explained how encouraging children’s beliefs in Santa Claus was an act of truth, as much as it was a lie, and how both points of view were beneficial to young minds. However, the act of writing said blog was a lot more complicated than conceiving the idea.
So, where do we begin? Perhaps some context is needed. Almost 19 years ago, my ex-wife and I got pregnant for the first time. Over the next six years after that, we’d get pregnant three more times, and were blessed with three daughters and a son. This year their ages are 19, 18, 15, and 14. As I have written in a previous blog, Christmas is one of my absolute favourite times of the year. One of the things that has always made the season mean something to me has been Santa Claus, who has always held an essential place in my heart. When my first daughter was born, I vowed that I would pass on that love of Christmas and Santa Claus to her and to any siblings she may have after. Some would argue that the act of instilling belief in Santa Claus in our children is inherently deceitful. But is it? Is there a way to hold onto our sense of wonder and magic, to ask our children to suspend their disbelief, however briefly, and still remain honest? I think yes.
Why is any of this important, though? Wouldn’t telling the absolute truth be easier? The answer, I think, is no, it wouldn’t be. The undeniable fact is that the world can be a dark, scary, and hateful place. We don’t always want to think it is, but that’s the truth, right? It’s easy to get lost in these horrible rabbit holes, where you feel like you’re falling forever with no bottom in sight. As a person who believes in an ultimate cosmic balance, I am often inclined to look for the flip side. For my own peace of mind, it’s essential to hold onto the idea that just as there is dark, there is also light; just as the world can be scary, it can also be full of joy; and just as we can be hateful, we can also love unconditionally. At first glance, these absolute truths look simple enough, but looks, as they say, can be deceiving.
The issue doesn’t lay in the simplicity or the complexity of the truths themselves. The issue, in reality, is in the abstract nature of these absolute truths. If history has taught us anything, it’s that humans do not do well with abstract thought. Without referents to provide context to us, we become confused. It’s easy to ask someone to define light, joy and love, but ask someone to draw or paint the concepts, and it becomes a challenge. This is why a concept called symbolic representation becomes so essential.
During the Christmas season, Santa Claus acts as the symbolic representation of all the goodwill in the world. He symbolizes love, acceptance, generosity, kindness, humility, and faith. Even though I have never told my children that Santa Claus the human being is not real, I am under no delusion that they believe he is, in fact, physically real. However, I would also be lying if I said that I thought they DID NOT believe in him. It’s easy to debate and claim victory or defeat when we reason in terms of “real” or “not real.” It’s easy to say that because Santa Claus, the person does not physically exist that he is not ‘real.’ But here’s my argument…
If Santa Claus is nothing more than a symbolic representation of all the good feelings the season is meant to bring, does that make him less real? When we exhibit the qualities that Santa Claus is meant to symbolize, are we not taking on the part of him in ourselves? And if he is a part of us, and we are real, doesn’t that make him real, too?