In life even the most honest amongst us tell a few lies now and again. There are the white lies like “This is the best present EVER!”, there are the black lies like “no I am absolutely not playing another round of fun no deposit bingo instead of doing the washing up” and then there are the lies of omission…
When it comes to the “Father Christmas” question, the lies you tell your excited children fall somewhere between white lies and lies of omission. You’re telling them a fictional fairy tale to make Christmas more magical, and you’re letting them continue to believe that a big fat bearded man climbs down their chimney to bring them presents. It’s questionable, either way.
With so much social media and internet access around these days, it’s easier than ever before for children to find out the terrible truth: Father Christmas isn’t real.
But what happens when your child asks you straight out? Should you lie? Or should you break it to them gently? In today’s blog we’ll be looking at 3 different approaches to the Santa Claus problem to help you decide which path to take with your little elves…
1. The Fantasist
You’re the kind of parent who goes all out to keep the magic alive at Christmas time. From munching the mince pies and carrots your kids leave out, to trekking snowy footprints from the chimney to the Christmas tree just for extra authenticity.
2. The Artful Dodger
You’re an expert at getting around the difficult questions like: “Mum, how come Santa has your handwriting?” and “How will Father Christmas get in if we don’t have a chimney?”. 1. Santa is very busy so he asked me to write the labels. 2. Santa has a magical key for houses which don’t have chimneys. Devious!
3. The Realist
You don’t go in for any of the fakery, instead, if your kids ask, you tell them straight out. Sure they might spill the beans to the rest of their class, but they might as well appreciate where the presents are really coming from – otherwise how will they learn the value of anything? Bah humbug!
What’s your approach to Father Christmas at Christmas time? Do your kids believe that Santa is real? Have you ever had to answer that awkward question? How did you respond? Share your experiences and opinions with our readers below or tweet your thoughts @TwoLittleFleas.
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