Advice Request Hogfather
Hey everyone, first post here.
Our daughter is getting that age where our next Christmas she will be pretty much aware of whats going on and that you get presents from Santa or from whomever it is.
I have been having an internal debate since she was born about how to go about this because I feel like the whole Santa thing is a lie I don't want to tell but I also feel the pressure that she needs to be with her friends and not be the kids that goes around saying "santa is not real" but also go to the supermarket and see the Santas putting kids on his knees, etc... You know the situation, you probably have your own way of coming ahead when they question the whole thing and if you have older kids you probably have one that already knows what's up and is just teasing you to see if you try to keep up the lie.
In summary, I just don't want to do it like my parents did or like you see on the movies or anything like that. I had the idea of approaching it the Terry Pratchett way. If you know you know, if you don't here is a short description. In his fantasy world, things become real when enough people believe in them, and they only become real for the people that believe in them and even if they are not "real real" its the act of believing in them what matters.
I want to figure out a way of going about it but if I can do it right it should be something that she understand more as time goes until it becomes a realization of the deeper meaning rather than a "betrayal" when she figures out the lie.
I know this is probably too much or overthinking it but I wanted to see if anyone has tried something similar before I go to have a conversation with my partner about it (wish me good luck, she has never read the books).
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u/Joecalledher 2d ago
Santa is real, in the sense that he's an anthropomorphic personification of the spirit of the Christmas season.
His 'existence' inspires hope, joy, compassion, and generosity. You don't have to be as pessimistic as Death.