The Four-Year-Old, from the backseat of the car: “Mommyo, are elves real?”
Mother, distracted by all the crazy drivers on the Thanksgiving weekend roads: “No.”
The Four-Year-Old: “But what about Santa’s elves?”
Mother, who somehow manages not to curse out loud: “That’s an excellent question, The Four-Year-Old. What do you think?”
The Four-Year-Old: “Well, Santa is real, so his elves must be too.”
Mother: “That’s excellent logic, dear.”
The Four-Year-Old: “What’s logic, Mommyo?”
Mother dives into long-winded explanation of logic to avoid thinking about the ethical lacuna allowing her child to believe in Santa Claus has created for a parent who tries very hard not to lie to said child.
Obnoxiously Swag makes a pretty good argument for never telling your child Santa is real in the first place. And in general, we try pretty hard to make the distinction between real and imaginary in the books she reads and TV shows she watches. And yet, there’s this Santa thing.
Our bread is pretty well baked in that The Four-Year-Old already believes Santa is real, and we’re going to allow her to revel in the magic of the Santa story for at least one more year. But I am dreading the fallout.
So, parents, how did you handle the whole Santa thing?
Related Articles
- Hey Local Readers – Want a free photo with Santa? (caterpickles.com)
- How to tell your child Santa doesn’t exist (obnoxiouslyswag.wordpress.com)
- A page from the True Story of Santa Claus, published in the Children’s Book of Knowledge, 1912. Worth reading through if only to feel thankful that you don’t have to deal with the trauma that would be caused by having a Father Whipper come down the chimney with Santa to punish the bad children on Christmas Eve.
- Is Santa Real?….. (amgrant.wordpress.com)
- How did your parents make Santa real for you? (ask.metafilter.com)
Image Credit
Thanks to Bart Fields for the fantastic picture of the Santa float from the 2006 Nieman Marcus Christmas parade in Dallas, Texas.
Michael Howell
Shala Howell
Well, this goofy blond guy is definitely convinced they’re real. He even knows how feed elves and other wonderful nature spirits. What ever happened to critical thinking and reason?……out the effing window. http://doodiepants.com/2011/06/11/elves-faeries-gnomes-and-nature-spirits-are-real/
My goodness. I’ll have to make sure The Four-Year-Old steers clear of him. Thanks for the link.
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Way cool! Some very valid points! I appreciate you penning this article plus the rest
of the site is very good.