Starship Asterisk*

Yes, I know. Nitpicker should have posted this one. I couldn't resist it.
Ann

That would explain the red color.

This too!
"You keep surfin' with hams then, Santa, Jaws is comin' to town!"

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I will be at that beach in a few days. Can't wait. You Tube seems to suggest it is Bondi Beach, but it is, in fact Noosa.

Moral Question: are we (me and the missus) bad parents for telling our pre-schoolers that Santa isn't real? (Nor the Tooth Fairy, nor the Easter Bunny, nor God?)

Nitpicker wrote:Moral Question: are we (me and the missus) bad parents for telling our pre-schoolers that Santa isn't real? (Nor the Tooth Fairy, nor the Easter Bunny, nor God?)

I've thought about this, myself. If it ever comes to it, rather than explicitly stating that Santa does or does not exist, I think I'll just ask the kid what it thinks and let it work the problem out itself. It's a very lightly moral issue when your kids go around telling all the other kids that Santa isn't real. Mostly it just ruins the parents' fun, which is at their kids' expense, anyway. At the end of the day, who is keeping score? They all find out eventually.

We told them not to tell their friends, as we didn't really want to incur the wrath of their angry parents. Our eldest was cool with that. Our youngest, however, is quite convinced that we're lying to him (at least about Santa, who personally gave him a book at kindergarten).

Well, it is true that someone was dressed up very convincingly like Santa! I guess you could say Santa is real in that sense, but that he can't fly around in the sky on a sleigh pulled by magical reindeer. My mom and dad kept it up for quite a while. I recall mom telling me one night that she heard hoof noises pattering against our roof at some point when I was sure he wasn't real, but since mom doesn't lie to me this started a war inside my mind with no proper resolution for a while. Ah, so mom does lie to me if the expression my face makes when she does it is hilarious enough.

Nitpicker wrote:I will be at that beach in a few days. Can't wait. You Tube seems to suggest it is Bondi Beach, but it is, in fact Noosa.

Moral Question: are we (me and the missus) bad parents for telling our pre-schoolers that Santa isn't real? (Nor the Tooth Fairy, nor the Easter Bunny, nor God?)

I wouldn't say Santa isn't real, but that Santa is a feeling of generosity and caring that lives in each of us; the person in the red suit (or however Santa is depicted on Australia -- I have trouble seeing Santa wearing clothes suitable for the North Pole in an Australian summer) is a personification of that ideal of sharing and generosity. It's great to get presents from Santa but it's even better to be a Santa to/for other people.

owlice wrote:

Nitpicker wrote:I will be at that beach in a few days. Can't wait. You Tube seems to suggest it is Bondi Beach, but it is, in fact Noosa.

Moral Question: are we (me and the missus) bad parents for telling our pre-schoolers that Santa isn't real? (Nor the Tooth Fairy, nor the Easter Bunny, nor God?)

I wouldn't say Santa isn't real, but that Santa is a feeling of generosity and caring that lives in each of us; the person in the red suit (or however Santa is depicted on Australia -- I have trouble seeing Santa wearing clothes suitable for the North Pole in an Australian summer) is a personification of that ideal of sharing and generosity. It's great to get presents from Santa but it's even better to be a Santa to/for other people.

Humbug. Santa cannot be both a feeling and the personification of the feeling (whether dressed in polar fleece, or board shorts).

I am all for spreading and sharing the feeling. Merry Christmas.

Nitpicker wrote:

owlice wrote:

Nitpicker wrote:I will be at that beach in a few days. Can't wait. You Tube seems to suggest it is Bondi Beach, but it is, in fact Noosa.

Moral Question: are we (me and the missus) bad parents for telling our pre-schoolers that Santa isn't real? (Nor the Tooth Fairy, nor the Easter Bunny, nor God?)

I wouldn't say Santa isn't real, but that Santa is a feeling of generosity and caring that lives in each of us; the person in the red suit (or however Santa is depicted on Australia -- I have trouble seeing Santa wearing clothes suitable for the North Pole in an Australian summer) is a personification of that ideal of sharing and generosity. It's great to get presents from Santa but it's even better to be a Santa to/for other people.

Humbug. Santa cannot be both a feeling and the personification of the feeling (whether dressed in polar fleece, or board shorts).

I am all for spreading and sharing the feeling. Merry Christmas.

I think one of the greatest teachings we can give our children is to be generous.

Board shorts, you say?

I just discovered this beautiful Christmas song, which I think I could listen to at any time of year. It makes a nice addition to this topic ...