Show WHAT WE SHOULD TEACH OUR CHILDREN ABOUT SANTA CLAUS should modern children bo 10 led to believe in santa claus with so many wonderful things in the world today that are true children bo be brought up tip on oil a myth handed down from earlier ages of mans ignorance are modern parents justified in practicing lne this thia annual deception which can call only be followed a few years later by disillusionment illusion ment many scientifically minded leaders of thought ask these questions santa claus has been haled baled before the court of inquiry to give an account of himself of what use is lie he in a modern world should he be not beban ishad reindeer sleigh dunder and blitzen and all santa claus is not if danger lie ile I 1 has aas survived and will continue to survive children need santa claus lie he la Is the creation of childhood As men invented idols because they needed objects to worship so children have invented a christmas saint because they needed to look upon a human being as a source of all unexpected joys though you may present santa claus clans as the spirit of giving with all the beauty of symbolism your children will still endow him with all the attributes of a best loved daddy children do not like abstractions str they prefer concrete things flesh and blood people even when children come to know that santa claus really real they liko like to keep on thinking he is sometimes they take particular pains riot not to disillusion us grownups grown ups they want so much to keep him intact even when they teach reach the matter of tact fact age of eight or nine that they are often very careful to see that their little brothers and sisters bisters keep falth faith with him until they to reach the legitimate age of disenchantment chant ment but there Is one thing we must guard against in dealing with santa claus we must not make a policeman of him it is a great temptation to the disciplinarian to degrade santa into a threat to enforce good behavior is to TOI rob him hilll of those qualities of understanding tor for which lie he is en end earol dearel to us it if santa claus know that we really mean to be naughty then who does lie he must know it else why should lie ho want to reward us so bountifully it la Is not necessary to lie to children about santa claus present him to them for what he is the embodiment of generosity of the spirit of giving ile he is a fairy like all other good fairies capable of perfo riming great magical things lia ha Is a sprite difficult to see but visible to those of great faith and pure heart ed imm uca I 1 Rieti viv |