Ellington

Stores have decked the halls, and Christmas music is playing on radio stations. As the holiday approaches, children anticipate the magic of the season and people ask my kids, "Is Santa coming to your house this year?"

My 6-year-old and 4-year-old usually glance at me before nodding and smiling politely, because here's the thing: My kids know Santa isn't real.

There seem to be two schools of thought on the phenomenon of Santa Claus. The Santa fan club believes children deserve to think magically as long as they possibly can. They think children will have to face the harsh realities of life soon enough. Why should we take Santa from them?

Christmas purists believe Santa is a myth and should remain that way. They believe by purposefully misleading children to believe in Santa, they may doubt the more important ideas they are taught: namely, the belief in God.

I grew up on Santa, and I didn't feel betrayed when I discovered the fat man in the red suit was actually my parents in their pajamas. But Christmas wasn't as fun or exciting after my discovery. My husband grew up in a family where Christmas was simply Christmas. His parents never told him Santa was shimmying down the chimney, yet he still has wonderful Christmas memories.

When my husband and I had our first child, we decided not to fall into either camp. As Christians, we didn't see any benefit in promoting Santa to our children.

Today's Santa Claus myth has strayed far from its fourth-century roots. St. Nicholas was a born into a rich family and devoted his life to giving selflessly to those less fortunate. His generosity of spirit is generally credited with the tradition of gift giving at Christmas. St. Nicholas gave with no ulterior motives, and his altruistic spirit echoed God's no-strings-attached gift to the world through the birth of Jesus.

My husband and I didn't want to dilute the importance of Jesus' birth for our kids. At the same time, we didn't think it was necessary to quash the playfulness of the season that goes hand in hand with the story of Santa.

My oldest daughter was 4 before she asked: "Momma, is Santa real?"

I answered her without hesitation: "Yes, he was."

She crawled onto my lap, and I told her the story of St. Nicholas, how he embodied the Christmas spirit by giving selflessly and became "Father Christmas."

Children have such vivid imaginations; why not include them in the charade? They understand make-believe. My daughters know Mickey Mouse isn't real, either, but that didn't dampen their enthusiasm when we went to Disney World.

Pretending is what they do best.

My kids know it's really their parents putting presents under the tree, but that doesn't stop us from hanging our stockings and rushing to bed so "Santa" can come, and it certainly doesn't stop us from celebrating the birth of our Savior.

"Christmas memories are among the most cherished of all my childhood reminiscences," said Dr. James Dobson in the December 2008 issue of Focus on the Family magazine.

"The fantasy of Santa Claus coming on Christmas Eve was an important part of the fun. I'm reluctant to deprive today's kids of an experience that was so exciting for me. ... Santa is fun, but Santa could be confusing. What are Christian parents to do? This is a judgment call to be made by a given family."