What Can Santa Teach Us About Challenging Our Beliefs
Posted: Thursday, February 24, 2011
by Craig Harper
craigharper.com
Evidence of Santa
For seven years of my life, I knew Santa was real. After all, he came to my house every Christmas night so I had no reason to believe anything else. All of my experiences until that point in my young life had reinforced the messages my parents had shared with me.
Firstly, there were the presents. The ones I got for being good. And, on those presents there were personalised notes from Santa to me – the good boy. The fact that Santa and Mum had the same handwriting was somehow irrelevant. And unnoticed by me. Then there were all those TV shows where I had seen Santa talking about his home at the North Pole where he, Mrs Clause and the elves made all the toys for us good kids. And, finally, there was the mess that he and his reindeers left every year after they had filled up on all the milk and Christmas cake I had put out for them.
A Pool!
When I was six, Santa brought me a swimming pool. How good is Santa! Not only did he deliver it but he also set it up, filled it with water and attached a filter to it. Santa totally rocked my world that year. In some ways, I was luckier than most kids because my dad ran a large department store which had some kind of deal with Santa and his helpers. You see, every year some of Santa’s helpers would come to my dad’s store so us kids could sit on their knees and tell them (who would then tell their boss, Santa) what presents us good kids should get.
What a great system. I totally loved Santa. Who wouldn’t?
Ho, Ho… Hoax
So, you can picture the look on my fat little face when, at the age of seven, I stumbled upon three fake Santa beards in my dad’s office. Sure, Ron gave me some long-winded, lame explanation about the beards but the seed of doubt had already been sown into my fertile young mind. I felt sick. The next day, I spoke to some ‘big kids’ who confirmed my worst fears: the fat man was indeed a fraud. My parents had scammed me. At first, my mum protested but, finally, she spilled the beans.
I was shattered.
I went to my room and cried my eyes out. Unlike most kids, I had no clue (of my parents’ well-meaning but fraudulent behaviour) until the day I stumbled upon the beards. Maybe it was because I was an only child and I had no older (and wiser) siblings to burst my Santa bubble. It’s not easy when you discover that something you have known to be true (not thought, wished or hoped) is actually just a story. And besides, why would I think, wish or hope when I knew he was real? I had seen all the evidence!
When Our Truth is a Myth
Sometimes, we arrive at a point on our journey only to discover that our truth is actually a myth. A story we’ve been told. A story we’ve told ourselves. A lie we’ve bought into. Sometimes, things aren’t as they seem. Or, as we see them. Sometimes, the only place something is real is in our head. Sometimes, we believe what’s comfortable while ignoring what everyone else already knows.
Is it time for you to let go of your Santa?
Craig Harper is one of Australia's leading self help authors.
Self Help Books - Craig Harper
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