When my sons ask me if Santa really exists, I smile and say no one knows, you see he has this way of knowing when you close your eyes for even a moment and that’s when he comes. No child has ever seen him. At that point, there is silence and you can see their brains going. Then they start asking questions and what mom wouldn’t take that opportunity to explain the muter boots on the reindeer hooves and have a little fun with it.
When all is said and done, they know the story of St. Nicholas and how he gave selflessly, be it wheat, coins or stopping an execution, he paved the way for our modern day Santa Claus. To this day many are inspired to give anonymously because of his actions in the 4th century. So yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus and you can find a bronze likeness of him in Russia, once again.
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas…did you realize they sang the same tune in Moses time, or there about? Not the literal tune but from a religious perspective, when the book of Leviticus was written the people were told to decorate with foliage and rejoice before God for 7 days? Evergreens, ivy, etc. were part of that even before the gift they were waiting for arrived.
Then there was Martin Luther, theologian in the 16th Century who was walking home one winter evening and was awestruck by the beauty of the stars as they twinkled between the evergreens. He wanted to recapture this beauty to show his family so he put a tree in the main room and wired candles on it. That must have been a beautiful sight.
Even before Martin Luther, people used evergreens for many things, health, ward away evil spirits…the list goes on. Even the vikings regarded the evergreen a tree of the gods.
My kids love the Christmas tree. I too, use to love to just sit in a room with a cup of tea, a book and the lighted tree…life rarely affords me that kind of tranquility for any period of time but I don’t mind 
. We hang stockings and Santa visits and leaves gifts for my children every year…he still stops at my parents and leaves me gifts too
When I was little I always wanted to know who the gift was from but with the exception of someone putting my name on my brothers unmentionables and vice versa, no one would tell. As I’ve gotten older, I understand now that who gave the gift didn’t matter as much as the reason they endured the crowds to give it….there was no e-shopping when I was little so they did endure crowds.
Christmas is about a gift of love. St. Nicholas gave out of love, compassion, a desire to see a better tomorrow. God gave out of love, compassion, a desire that none should perish, he gave the gift of a child, his son. I can’t think of a greater gift of love, can you?
i like it