An Honest Christmas

Written by Writer Dad on December 17, 2008 - View Comments
Categories: Writing

“There are three stages of a man’s life:  He believes in Santa Claus, he doesn’t believe in Santa Claus, he is Santa Claus.”
~Author Unknown

2045648290_d420530048I’m excited.  Though we are all bustling about this week thinking we couldn’t be any busier, no one is more occupied over the next nine days than Santa Clause.  Yet he has agreed to a guest post because he is such a generous soul. Please give your attention to Santa as he discusses the value of an honest Christmas.

Across the atlas, boys and girls believe I face my most difficult task during the endless hours of Christmas Eve. Alas, this is only half truth.

Whilst I span a spinning globe, descending chimneys and slipping unnoticed into every flat and hovel bearing a wide-eyed child swollen with hope, those endless hours between midnight and morn, imbued with enchantment, afford this ancient man plenty of time to ponder.

Each island of color, surrounded by blue, fills my mind with fresh thought. However, the season is short and near at my boots, so I must dip my quill in focus.

The assembly of states that gather between the two great seas has swollen the sentiments of this old man. My tired eyes have born witness to innumerable things, but few so glorious as the birth of that great nation.

But all is not well.

I fear for the future when I gaze down upon a veering mindset and know that it takes but a single strong wind to tear things asunder. I have been present through enough history to understand the damage done by the wolfish appetite of gluttony.

This year my sack is crowded with honest treasure. I beg the moms and dads of that great nation to do the same. Climbing toward the rafters with baubles will only threaten the ease of simple delight.

I beg this year for an honest Christmas.  Give to your children the things that do not require a wait in line: your time, love, and genuine thought; things crafted by hand, pulled from thy mind, or handed down from an otherwise forgotten yesterday. Forgo the frippery that will  succeed only in reducing the holiday to its most crass commercial component, supplying a momentary surge of excitement, with charm wearing but a brief half-life before something deep and silent inside the soul of those children longs for something pure.

Do not buy what you cannot afford, or pay with a chip of plastic that will only enslave.

Your children will still rise with the frosty dawn, hearts aglow.  An honest Christmas will teach them more that morning than a mountain of boxes ever could.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night!

Chris K.

Santa hired a ghostwriter. You can too. Ghostwriter dad writes custom letters, wedding vows, or anything requiring words.

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  • Santa, I was going to comment and say Thank You for your gentle reminder to make Christmas meaningful in a non-materialistic manner, but after reading Writer Dad's mom's comment, I have to say I'm with her on this one. Classic.

    Merry Christmas to everyone!

    <abbr>Kool Aids last blog post..What do you like?</abbr>
  • Laurie
    This year, Santa, we are extremely low on funds. I have only asked for one thing and a modestly priced one at that. I think I am more excited about getting this one thing than I was when the boxes under my tree were ridiculously numerous. I am looking forward to time spent with my family and enjoying what we make out of the day without all the presents that has taken center stage before.
  • " Give to your children the things that do not require a wait in line: your time, love, and genuine thought..."

    Okay. We ADULTS might understand how priceless that is....

    But try to explain that to a hyper six-year old who just wants TOYS TOYS TOYS! :-D

    <abbr>Friars last blog post..“Big City” Dining</abbr>
  • writerdad's mom
    Oh dear, I do believe that Santa's malaise comes from what we are all feeling this year...a little burned out and disillusioned with the economy and the condition of our world. He probably had to lay off half of his elf workforce and does not want to outsource to China because of all the toxins in their toys. Reindeer food has gone up 30% and his huge North Pole spread is in danger of bank repo. Global warming is setting in and he let his flood insurance lapse.
    I think that Ma Kringle needs to throw some bubble bath into the hot tub, break out the cranberry martinis and give old Kris an attitude adjustment. Nothing like a good snow job! Seriously, I am all for the sugarplum ideals of the true spirit of Christmas, quality family time and homespun goodness. I cannot count the number of handmade gifts or flea market finds I have given over the years, but lets not take the exuberant feeding frenzy out of Christmas morning. Kids look forward to this all year. Lots of stuff is fun, even if it is ten things from the 99cent store. I know that I am running the risk of being stoned by pieces of coal for my bad little material girl outlook, but I'll just have to take that coal, glitter it and make a necklace for myself! (love ya, Sean)
  • Santa, after reading this I come to the conclusion that no matter how many toys you deliver this year, your sack will always be full to bursting.

    A fine message indeed.
  • ho, ho, ho Santa and I agree...sometimes the kiddos turn out to be great elves...we decided several years ago that we would share our talents on Christmas with each other, so this year we are painting in oils, scrapbooking our pile of Christmas celebration pictures, writing poems and making masks. We know you will fill our stockings with magic and oranges and we will enjoy cooking our feast together - yum yum...we gave away gifts to 3 families in need and supplied all the goodies for their feast and felt the joy.

    And guess what, it never snows here, but today we are close to getting 12 inches...what an amazing site...cross country skiing to work and back! What a treat
    Thanks Santa...but please let the travelers be safe in their journeys..

    <abbr>Patricias last blog post..Anatomy of a Fat Cell</abbr>
  • Sal
    Hi Santa, all I want for Christmas this year is more Moleskine notebooks to scribble away in. Is that doable? I mean come on, they are only a few bucks a piece and I can carry them around in my pocket, and even better yet, they can be bought with a few coins and some $1 bills. No need for plastic here. Just whatever you do, don't leave me coal again like last year. I have been nice this year, I think.

    Oh, and BTW, I love you you talk in the old English with thous and thys and such. I will be leaving a tray of snowmen poop and puppy food for you (marshmellows and chocolate covered chex mix) becaue I know you will be tired of all the cookies by the time you get around to my neck of the woods. Thanks.

    <abbr>Sals last blog post..Deck the Halls</abbr>
  • Hi Sean!
    I finally made my way over here to your site, and I must admit that I'm now hooked! What a talent you have! =D

    I wish you and your family all the best in this newest chapter! May your journey be fulfilling!
    ~Leslie, aka Alison, Henry, and Kate's mama
  • Well said Santa. I'm talking back the Wii I just bought. I'm sure my kids will understand.:) Maybe we will go bowling for real or play tennis instead.

    <abbr>Turf Dads last blog post..7</abbr>
  • Mer
    That was excellent. I sent it to my kids. Thank you, Writer Dad. :)

    --Mer

    <abbr>Mers last blog post..Another scary moment</abbr>
  • ;-) Smiling.

    Tell the big guy I have been good this year, I'd like some more twinkle for my eyes and lots of love for everyone.

    Course I wouldn't turn down that Jaguar..hehehe

    (told ya, she says smugly.)

    A very good friend sent me a miniature tree last week with ornaments made from our walks on the beaches in the Pacific Northwest, driftwood, stones, a quarter ( for those shower slots in all the camping places. ) A small snow globe, you get the idea. and it has lights and a battery pack. I put it above my bed in the window. Cool, cool cool. It's a shared memory tree from a painting trip just a few years ago. And my Thanksgiving card was a photo of an orange octopus we played tag with in a tide pool. I LOVE them. It says to me that our time together is valued. And that's a very warm thought. Makes me smile every time I look at it.

    <abbr>Janice Cartiers last blog post..Santa Came Early</abbr>
  • GP
    Excellent writing Santa!

    I couldn't agree with you more.

    Gifts from within are the best over anything store bought. Although, if you happen to have a winning lottery ticket in your bag, I would be willing to take that as well.

    <abbr>GPs last blog post..A Cool Invention - Juice Boxes</abbr>
  • Santa, you've always been my favorite Super Hero!

    <abbr>Chriss last blog post..I Shall Return</abbr>
  • Yeah.

    I actually had to tell my MIL that it was OK not to buy her adult children (with kids and grand kids of their own) gifts...that she didn't have to show her love with material goods, and we'd be fine just hanging out, watching the little ones play, and having a quiet Christmas Eve. She goes insane every year and spends, spends, spends...and it's just not necessary. Honestly, I have re-gifted so many things that weren't appropriate for me, but she felt like she had to give a pile of gifts, and...sigh.

    I had to tell her that she cannot give the Evil Genius more than two gifts, and restrict size, because she's prone to buying out the toy aisle and giving oversized train tables and such...when all he really needs is a toy car and her love...and maybe for her to quit smoking, which would be a gift to the whole family!

    I'd rather have time, and quiet, good food and drink, and maybe some laughs...things we can't wrap but that last as long as recall allows.

    Shade and Sweetwater,
    K

    <abbr>Kyddryns last blog post..The Good Soul</abbr>
  • Hi Sean: Your comment on my blog said you had a guest post from Santa and I came running to look. I agree with everything Santa has to say here; it's so true that most material gifts just provide momentary excitement and are thrown in the trash just a short while later. Christmas is about so much more than that. Merry Christmas Sean (and Santa).

    <abbr>Marelisas last blog post..Five Ways to Keep Your Spirits Up During the Holidays</abbr>
  • Sean,
    Nicely done -- having Santa write such a great guest post. I bet you've got an email request out for the Easter Bunny, too.

    Loved this: "I have been present through enough history to understand the damage done by the wolfish appetite of gluttony."

    <abbr>SpaceAgeSage -- Loris last blog post..Your kind of neighborhood … or not?</abbr>
  • Amy
    Amen to this:

    "Give to your children the things that do not require a wait in line: your time, love, and genuine thought; things crafted by hand, pulled from thy mind, or handed down from an otherwise forgotten yesterday."


    Just the time and love part would be enough in many cases.

    Here Santa, have some cookies...

    <abbr>Amys last blog post..Beginnings and endings</abbr>
  • Dear Santa,

    Can you just delivery some love from your sack? I know you'd NEVER run out!!

    Love,
    Hayden

    P.S. And if you have room for it, a pony!

    <abbr>Hayden Tompkinss last blog post..Christmas Contest for the Fabulous!</abbr>
  • All right Santa, I hear you, man. Too much junk, etc, etc, etc. But just between you and me...I've been a REALLY good boy this year!!! :-) Eric.

    <abbr>Eric Hamms last blog post..The Rats Stole My ‘Stuff’!</abbr>
  • Hi, Santa!

    In my house, we always believed you and your elves did a MUCH better job of gift-giving than we ever could. Knowing that, we always did as you suggest in your letter to us. We made date-filled cookies---so many of them, one year, that we made ourselves sick. YUM! We made a hot-candies Christmas cake, so heavy it took two hands to hold. We opened a box of hand-me-down clothes each Christmas Eve (before you came, and before the reading of the Bible's Christmas story, and before going to Christmas Eve Mass). Oh!, how we looked forward to that box! Not so much for what it would hold, but because it was tradition! There was the delaying tactic deployed by Dad each Christmas morning, engineered just so Mom could sleep that tiny bit longer; he was a MASTER at making a game of everything, even keeping kids from charging the Christmas stockings. There was the family dinner, and Grandpa would come, and we were always cautioned not to make him laugh so much as we played a gut-busting slap-down card game. Oh!, there were SO many other traditions we shared, and THOSE were the makings of the stories we still share today, so very many years later.

    So, Santa, you are ABSOLUTELY right! And I thank you for writing this letter to us so that maybe, just maybe other kids can learn some of the lessons you are sharing----that the sharing and continuity of love and tradition are far more meaningful to children than parents might believe. Love, ~Julie

    <abbr>Julies last blog post..Our World in a Christmas Tree</abbr>
  • Very refreshing to see the big guy take such an anti-commercial stance. I'm proud of you mister Kringle. Thanks for the great message.

    <abbr>Chucks last blog post..Sisters teaching sisters</abbr>
  • Wow, Santa. I never knew you wrote so well. Who taught you? Mrs. Claus?

    Have you seen Hannukah Harry lately?

    <abbr>Ari Herzogs last blog post..Share Inspiration</abbr>
  • I'd love to do as you ask, Santa, but I'm afraid of something. I'm afraid of putting you out of business. What will you do when we no longer give toys? Kids will stop trusting you to bring them what they want. You'll be ousted. Thousands of elves will be out of work.

    But I like you too much. I'll try to do as you say. It is good advice.
  • Amen.

    And, while I've bought some things for gifts this year (because, well, I can't make wireless bluetooth headsets), I'm also giving a LOT of handknitted gifts. Because it's all about the thought and the love, right? Not the dollar amount.

    Although, really, I don't think anyone would have objected if I'd made their gifts in, say, cashmere....

    <abbr>--Debs last blog post..Looking for a Moral</abbr>
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