This picture is from Awkward Family Photos, a hilarious and addictive site, go take a look.
Several years ago while shopping for Christmas gifts for underprivileged children in my town, my 3 three year old daughter made the inevitable logical connection and asked, "but Mommy why do we have to buy them presents, why doesn't Santa just bring them toys?" I hesitated for a moment, then gently told her the truth. I hate lying to my kids. Also, growing up in an Estonian household, the whole Santa myth is alien to me. We celebrated everything on Christmas Eve. Having Santa show up while you're nibbling your Estonian Christmas Eve dinner of blood sausage, head cheese and beet potato salad would be a tough trick to pull off (but a good distraction given the menu, bleh).
I've come across parents who seem to want to keep the belief in a magic fat old guy alive up until their kids are filling out their college applications. Many of those same parents have instilled a belief in their children of really goofy things, like the Easter bunny. I listened incredulously to a 7 year old and her parents talk about the giant rabbit that comes down from the mountains on Easter morning to bring her chocolate. Now that is f*cked. Because if that's the kind of weirdness we're having our kids believe, this could be equally just as true.....
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4 comments:
The whole season is awash with myths if you ask me. (And most people don't!)
There is a gigantic hole in the middle of the human brain that can only be filled with either porn or myths.
I believe that this is what it is because we are obssessed with Sex and Death.
Thanks for posting that clip, I had forgotten how funny it was
Dinah- I'd ask you! I'm more of a pagany, winter solstice kind of gal myself, but don't actually do anything but put up the tree. I think the Santa myth is your secular Jesus for kids and can be used sort of the same way - if you're naughty you won't get any presents, which for a kid is like being in hell.
Donn- that's it! add shopping and the aquisition of 'stuff', and I suppose that compulsion exist to show off wealth = power = attractiveness = more sex, and we're just right back to porn. Our sex and death obsession must also explain why it was almost impossible to buy a teen novel for my daughter at the bookstore yesterday that wasn't about sexy emo angsty vampires and werewolves. ugh.
Mel- it's a classic, I think I'm due for a rewatching soon.
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