Contrary to popular belief, I do not drink and blog. Okay, in the spirit of Christmas I will be honest and say that sometimes I drink and blog. Or most of the time. Whatever.
So you liked the hook of my title, eh? Well, before I get all these hate comments that I need to moderate let me explain (by the way, in case you're wondering, if EVER you leave me a comment and use the "R" word, you are blackballed, banned, blocked, etc. I don't even care that you don't like what I wrote. You may NOT use that word in my presence.)
Apparently my ADD kicked in...as I was saying, before I get all these hate comments, let me explain. There has been lately online and in kindergarten classrooms mention this anti-Santa backlash, saying the image of Santa defeats the spirit of Christmas and feeds into commercialism and blah blah blah. I say that is bullshit. Mostly because I freaking LOVE Santa. I love the idea of Santa, and I will be upset the day my kids don't believe probably more than they will.
Some parents say they don't like lying to their kids. PUH-LEEEZE! Welcome to parenthood! About 90 % of what you tell your kids is mostly lies. Okay, maybe not that much, but when your 4 year old asks you where babies come from, are you REALLY going to give them the dirty? I think not.
Some say it's about RELIGION. Seriously? The very first St. Nick was a Bishop in like, the 6th century or whatever. HE WAS A BISHOP! Who can argue with the religiousness of a Bishop?
And here's my point. Christmas is all about celebrating the birth of Jesus. Jesus, the original teller of all fairy tales...but we don't call them fairy tales because that may be sacrilegious. When Jesus is talking, we call them "parables", which are really just stories with a lesson. If you don't like the notion of calling them "fairy tales" you can call them what the Brother's Grimm did. Fables. Either way, they are stories that aren't true, but PREACH just the same. Consider the story of the Good Samaritan. He did good when no one else did. Or the mustard seed. Or the parable of the talents. Pick one. Jesus told STORIES so that his disciples could easily understand God's heart and intention. I ask you then, What better story to use to teach very young children about the joy of giving to others than Santa?
I even read one report that had the disclaimer that Santa just says that "if you're good you'll get a toy, or something materialistic". Isn't the point of being a Christian that if you are good, and do good for others and live in love you will also "get something", like, a ticket into heaven? That idea is waaaay too abstract for little kids. Give 'em something to understand. If you choose to go all overboard and buy into commercialism, that is your own problem, but you can teach kids the meaning of what the spirit of Christmas represents and still have Santa as you bff come Dec. 24th. It's okay. Seriously, didn't Jesus himself command to us to do something for another without that person knowing it was us? So that we aren't taking credit instead of listening to the message... Do for others.
Look, when I was a kid my parents ROCKED OUT the whole Santa thing. Boot prints in the snow. Windows opening and closing. Bells ringing. They went all out. And why not? Little kids are only little for such a short time and once you take away the fantasies of whatever it is they believe in, be it Cinderella or Santa Claus, they are one step closer to adulthood, and WHY throw them into the harsh realities of the real world before we have to? Why is it so demonized to let kids believe in magic? Why can't they have a wonderful, wonder filled world only for them for the brief time that it's okay to enjoy it?
As I said, my parents ROCKED it when it came to Santa. And guess what? I still believe in the "REAL" story of Christmas. It's still my favorite holiday (remember, I got married 9 days before Christmas). I'm still able to teach my kids what it means to be kind, generous, loving, appreciative, non-materialistic, family centered, and joyful. I also don't use just the Christmas season to do this. The spirit of giving and generosity and thinking of others happens 365 days around here, Santa notwithstanding.
Look, if you want to get all preachy on the birth of Christ and shit, consider the following points:
1.) The Bible doesn't even reveal Jesus' actual birthdate.
2.) Half the shit you're telling your kids about the "story", like the pageant is b.s. Nowhere is it found in the Bible that Mary rode on a donkey, or the whole story of the Inn, or even of Jesus laying in a manger. So, if you're going to condemn "Santa' and his spirit, I hope you get that crap right.
3.) If you're going to tell your kids Santa isn't real, I hope you don't have a "Christmas" tree in your home. It's well known that Christmas trees originated from Pagan beliefs. Look it up.
4.) Technically speaking, if you decide to call bullshit on Santa, you should also tell your kids that the December 25th date for the "birth of Christ" is also bullshit. In Pagan traditions, Dec. 25th refers to the birth of the sun God Mithros or something like that. Scholars and theologans believe Jesus was born sometime in the fall...septemberish thru novemberish...
5.) And if you really want to get all super technical, God does not command us to celebrate the birth of Christ in the bible. Rather, we are commanded to take communion "in rememberence of me". Soooo, we are to celebrate his death. Some hardcore Christians think it's even sacriligous to celebrate Christmas. Do a little research. I. Kid. You. Not.
The point is, it's not whether you teach your kids about Santa or the "True meaning of Christmas." Whatever the hell that is. It's about love, joy, kindness, and everything that THE LIFE OF JESUS represents.
And so, if Santa were to be made into a parable, I think Jesus would do it. Because the Santa story embodies everything Jesus himself embraced and taught about. Some people who've bought into the commercialism have just ruined that message for themselves, and others in the process. And just to hone in on the message, I work with little ones whose parent's can't afford to do the "commercialistic thing" and they rely on the Santas all of us have it in us to be.
But I still believe.
I believe in magic.
I believe in love.
And most whole-heartedly, I believe in Santa.
Give someone less fortunate than you something without them knowing it, and if you can, enjoy THEIR joy.
I'll bet you believe in Santa too.
No comments:
Post a Comment