There is a misconception going about that Santa Claus is not real.
Since Christmas Eve is fast upon us and may have arrived at your house, it is timely to face the voiced criticisms of Father Christmas in order to dispel the fanciful notion that Kris Kringle is somehow not real.
For answers to the Jack Frost critics, why don’t we turn to the jolly old elf himself?
In 1947 and again in 1994, Santa personally appeared on the silver screen in two versions of the movie, “Miracle on 34th Street.” His responses in those movies are instructive and illuminating.
Can reindeer fly? Only on Christmas Eve. A quite practical response, don’t you think? So, don’t look out the window for flying reindeer on any other night. Visit those friendly deer at the zoo or park or at work in Lapland. Then, let them fly on the one night they do take to the sky. And, as we know from the poem, “The Night Before Christmas,” there have been recorded sightings.
Where are Santa’s workshops? At the North Pole, of course, where all believe. You can’t see them, because they’re invisible. I thought everyone knew that. As they say, it never hurts to revisit the obvious. Imagine, thinking you could see the buildings from space or crack through the ice in a nuclear submarine and find the elves at work. There is a train, as you know, for special children on that special night. If you’d like a peak, jump on board the movie, “The Polar Express,” and off you go for the adventure of a Christmas Eve.
How does Santa do it all in only one night? Well, if a second were a day, a minute a year, and a night a millennium, then there’d be enough time to visit all the boys and girls in one night and still have time left over for a round of golf with the Easter Bunny. It is helpful to listen to the source himself. Saint Nikolass or Sinter Klaas or Pere Noel or Babouschak has many names and speaks many languages, sign language and Dutch included. You can hear him speak and see him sign in the movies. Or, if you’re very brave, you can creep out late on Christmas Eve, peer around the corner at the twinkling stars on the Christmas tree, spy the presents wrapped and displayed below, and turn your ear to the twinkle of a sleigh bell and a happy “Ho Ho Ho” lifting over your house into the night air.
Oh, it is a wondrous night, and one I always remember, each one.
One last question was not answered in the movies. It was suggested but not asked directly when Susan sighed and commented to Mr. Kringle, “My mother got me all the presents I asked for last year.” The question she was thinking was, “Why do I need Santa Claus? My mother buys my presents, doesn’t she?”
Now, that is a vexing question.
The answer is really quite simple. Yes, your parents and relatives and friends and family members do buy presents. Those are your presents when you fall asleep on Christmas Eve. But, there are many boys and girls around the world who have few or no presents for that special night. Santa Claus knows this. When he slips down the chimney or climbs through the window, he has in his bag the very same presents your others have wrapped and displayed for you. Santa quietly takes those for his sled and places under the tree your gifts from Santa Claus, cleverly designed to look to everyone else exactly like the ones they wrapped or placed. This is a great secret of Christmas. On his sled, with the help of his elves, the time weavers of Christmas, your presents are magically transformed to presents of touch and thought for other boys and girls around the planet. This is a great magic of Christmas. It is a truth known in the hearts of mommies and daddies through all the lands, and it is why I believe in Santa Claus.
So, as you see, Santa is there for us all.
There is no child he forgets.
He remembers each,
And every one.
I Do Believe.
Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!
Grandpa Jim