Do you believe in Santa?

My grandson is approaching the age where many children start to doubt that Santa is real. It is a tough time for any child who has been told all his/her life that Santa is a real person. Our belief system functions to keep us sane, if not safe. Our parents tell us that Santa is real, and we trust and believe our parents. Yet, as we start to expand our sense of the world, and create and gain new friends, some older than we are, we learn new things. One of the things we learn from our ever-widening circle of friends is that some of them do not believe Santa is real. Our friends in an effort to help us understand the world tell us that Santa is not real and Santa is really our parents.

But our belief system is strong, and we know our parents can be trusted to tell us the truth and so when we ask we are told that, yes Santa is real.

My grandson came home and said to his mom, "I have three friends that tell me they don't believe in Santa, but they believe in God. What the heck is up with that?  I told them that I believe in Santa, but I don't believe in God."

His Mom asked, "Why?"

His response was, "When we were in Canada, we went to Grouse Mountain, and I saw the real Santa. Also, Santa brings me presents, and I have never seen God, and God has never given me a present." Seven-year-old logic.

My grandson had been to Canada a few times and when he was five, we had gone to the Xmas celebration at the top of Grouse Mountain called The Peak of Christmas as part of that experience, we went for a sleigh ride, visited Santa's workshop in the snow, and he got to see Santa in his workshop. It was a magical experience for all of us, and he still believes he saw the real Santa in his workshop.

My grandson lives in Australia and Xmas is usually pretty hot, we were there one year and it was 40 degrees Celsius (104 for my American friends) on Xmas day. Seeing Santa in his workshop and walking through the snow to get to the workshop, makes Santa more believable. One day he will catch up to his friends and lose the belief that Santa is real, but my hope is that he keeps the spirit of Xmas. Christmas is a wonderful time of the year when people give freely to others and to those in need. This giving is part of the Xmas spirit which sadly only comes on some at this time of year but should be with us all year. Merry Xmas and Happy Holidays to you.