A common problem families face is how to tell their children the truth about The Big Guy or Father Christmas or Old St. Nick. I am of course referring to Santa Claus.
Some families begin telling their children that Santa is fake right off the bat as some wait until they grow up while some don’t mention it and allow their children to find out on their own as they grow up in life. Does finding out the truth ruin the Christmas magic? This week, I asked eight people how they found out the truth about Santa Claus and how they felt.
Disappearing magic
Everyone that I had the pleasure of interviewing were from different parts of the east coast. Spanning from Georgia all the way to New York. With all their ages spanning from 18 up till 35. Asking various questions such as how old were they when they found out the truth and how did they react. Chris Kulczytzky, a 32 year old man from Malvern, Pennsylvania spoke on the topic stating “Slow rumors in elementary school spread approximately around 4th grade (8-10 years old). I didn’t know how to feel but I was disappointed because the magic was gone”. Chris is not the only respondent to say that the “magic” had disappeared.
Valerie Wheeler, a 20 year old girl from Philadelphia added “My brother told me Santa wasn’t real when I was 6 or 7. I was devastated, the magic of Christmas was gone forever”.
To many the magic of Christmas has nothing to do with Santa Claus but has everything to do with the feelings and the nostalgia they get around this time of the year. Santa Claus plays a huge role in Christmas no matter if you believe in him or not. For many, Santa represents something more than just a man in a big red suit that delivers them presents. For all families Santa looks slightly different. For some families Santa is a figure of hope and the children in these families are likely to hold on to the belief of Santa for longer than those who look at Santa as “magician”; meaning he does all of this in one night and can stop time and give the children everything they ask for.
For some the magic is never real and never disappears. Santa means everything to many children and for others he’s a figure head. John Lane, a 26 year old man from Jasper, Georgia mentioned this “I was eight years old and a friend had told me. I was not upset”. So for some Santa doesn’t mean too much so they aren’t upset to find out the truth whereas for others they are devastated when they find out about Santa Claus.
Older siblings are faced with the hardest role of keeping the secret for those who are younger. “When I was 9 years old I got suspicious from people saying he isn’t real. Then some kids started to say how Santa did different things like leaving the notes etc. and realized it isn’t true the next year. I wasn’t super sad because I had to keep it going for my younger siblings” said a 28 year old woman from Lake Grove, New York who is the oldest of five. This is what makes Santa so special. Older siblings have a big role in a younger sibling’s belief in Santa. Making sure that even when they don’t believe or that the magic is gone for them that it is all still there for their younger siblings.
What is Santa exactly?
Santa is described by many as a feeling or a state of mind more than a person; which is a unique way of thinking. Many people like to tap into their childlike imagination from time to time and imagine what life would be like if Santa was real and that lets them revisit the magic of Christmas. It allows them to rekindle the feelings they thought were gone forever. So saying that the magic is gone forever is something plenty of people would disagree with and will say is flat out wrong. Though many say the feelings of believing in Santa can never be replicated when others say they can be. One example people use is falling in love. When you break up, it stings and you keep replaying how that person made you feel. So why is Santa any different? But that argument has a flaw because someone else can come into your life and make you feel that feeling of love again. So in Santa’s case who is that, the Easter bunny?
With all of that in mind, what should we be telling our children? As you can see based on the few quotes given that each individual can react differently based on where they are in the order of siblings, age, ect. So what we should tell our children exactly isn’t clear. It is a hard topic to discuss and to determine what is right or wrong. But I think we can all agree that no matter your age, no matter if you believe or not, no matter if you once believed and now don’t, whatever the case may be we all can agree that Santa Claus plays a major role in how we celebrate Christmas. Now, what do you think, will you be telling your children that Santa is real or fake?
