X mas o menos mentiras piadosas
Within the month of December, some of the basics that my predominantly Catholic, Mexican-American family cling to are: Santa Claus, presents, and women cackling over wine in my mother’s breakfast nook.
Paco de Lucia or Pedro Infante plays in the background. Children of various ages burst through the front door and out the backdoor at random times, pausing only to either grab a marranito from the island, or to let their mother’s chastisements go in one ear and out the other.
“You’d better behave, or Santa isn’t going to bring you any presents,” is usually how that’s phrased.
If and when I have children, I refuse to perpetuate the lie of Santa Claus. Telling children that Santa Claus is coming to town is not not a harmless lie.
The promise of material goods from a fictional entity who makes a judgment call about who is good and bad sends the wrong lesson to children. It tells them that they should only behave according to the standards of important people in their lives when they want something. It also reinforces the idea that good people have a lot of stuff. It is the seed of classism and materialism. Furthermore, what else becomes suspect when they find out you’ve misled them?
I learned something this holiday season when I almost lost someone I love. Taking the time to learn about someone you’re close to, whether it’s by asking them questions or sharing stories about yours, is far more valuable to them than sending them a funny video in their inbox, or giving them a toy. Real, open two-way communication keeps relationships alive.
So, why haven’t we evolved past the idea of Santa? When I posed this question to members of my family, I got a “Don’t be such a grinch you scrooge. It’s just a little white lie that makes it more fun for the kids.”
Or does it just make them really disappointed with the holiday scene later on in life when they don’t have anything substantive to look forward to? Just the obligation to shop.
You don’t need to lie about where stuff comes from to make people feel special. The core idea of family and friends making a seasonal pilgrimage to a place where they can embrace and catch up is a wonderful way to celebrate time away from the daily obligations that separate people.
People are SO much more important than things.
This holiday season, we should have the presence of mind to stop perpetuating traditions that presocialize children to behave in ways which diminish the value of interpersonal communication and place more emphasis on object accumulation than relationship development.
i like your santa theory, and i agree, all though you probably guessed i wont be having children. ill adopt.
It’s sad that the intelligent women are the ones who are deciding not to reproduce.
ill reproduce and adopt? neither of whom will believe that I would actually let a strange man break into the house once a year on the condition that he leave gifts and only eat the four cookies left out…it’s a safety thing clearly.
omg: http://www.entertainmentwise.com/news/46127/george-clooney-visits-santa-claus