By Debbie Foster
Recently I read an article about a young boy, whose younger brother was being teased in school because the younger sibling still believed in Santa Claus. The boy was old enough to have realized that his younger brother needed to be told “the truth” about Santa Claus but was unsure how to handle the situation.
This reminded me of my childhood, and how my sister, who was eight years older than me, was forced into a difficult situation, one Christmas Eve. She was always given the responsibility to keep me entertained with stories every Christmas Eve. The plan was that I would not know that “Santa” was delivering gifts from just outside my closed bedroom door. Suddenly, this Christmas Eve, I heard a ball bounce slowly down the stairs and several upset voices, right outside my bedroom.
I, being at the age, where I was beginning to catch onto possibilities of the “truth” about Santa, was sure I had figured out what was going on. I immediately headed for the door to see if Santa was real. Being eight years older than me, my sister was bigger and stronger than me and she stopped me immediately. She was also a faster thinker than me and informed me that our parents were helping Santa with delivering our goodies and that Santa might get mad; and maybe, not even return the next year! So, I decided to stay in the bedroom.
Christmas Eve was always a bit disruptive as our grandmother came to visit and ended up sleeping in the bed with my sister and me. My sister was always assigned to watch me because of my inexhaustible desire to catch Santa in the act of delivering his gifts to our house. Unfortunately, our grandmother snored and was not a small woman. It made for a very long Christmas Eve night for all of us. I am sure many of us share these types of special memories from those days gone by.
Getting back to the dilemma of parents discussing the “truth about Santa”. I just read a couple of beautiful ideas about how to approach children when the time comes to share more adult information regarding the jolly old fellow.
One of my favorite Christmas movies of all times is Miracle on 34th Street. I watched it almost every Christmas throughout my life. What a beautiful story that shows the humanity of sharing with others at such a heartfelt time of year.
A recent article in Good Housekeeping tells us that the average age a child begins asking serious questions about Santa Claus is around 7 to 10 years old. I also found it interesting that according to a recent survey of 4500 families in the United States, in different areas of the U.S., differ in ages when children no longer believe in Santa Claus. This time of change in a child’s emotional perspective is a great time to begin new traditions within a family, that will last from childhood and can be adopted as a family tradition.
One last piece of valuable information from the Goodhousekeeping.com article that I would like to share is from an anonymous parent. The article has been circulated throughout Facebook and suggest a brilliant opportunity to offer children the idea that they are now at an age where they are mature enough to become Santa, themselves.
I was unable to post from the Good House Keeping article itself, but you can click on the link below and be taken to a Facebook page where you can read the information directly from Facebook.
I hope I have shared some helpful ideas that you can adapt to your family and the children that are experiencing the wonder of Santa Claus in their lives. Santa offers us a chance to learn the value of giving to others, without expectations. It is a virtue to share and a lesson to cherish all through our lifetime.
Wishing you a beautiful New Year and many blessings to you and your family this year. Thank you for reading. May all your Christmas’s be merry.
Debbie Foster
Good Housekeeping Article: Is Santa Real? How To Tell Kids About Santa When They Ask Questions
Facebook.com: Posted by Charity Hutchinson (November 29, 2016)
Edited To Add: Written by Leslie Rush
