Every year, little kids wake up on Christmas morning and eagerly run downstairs to see what presents Santa has left for them. They gaze at the red and green wrapped presents, longing to see what is inside.
Fast forward a couple years and the same kids go downstairs and the same excitement goes through their body, but this time they know it is their parents who have wrapped and set up the presents instead of Santa climbing down the chimney with a brown sack of gifts.
It is a part of growing up: figuring out Santa isn’t real and discovering that parents are the one behind all the Christmas magic. Even though Santa, the workshop, and all the elves may not exist, the work that parents put in to maintain the Christmas spirit is more than what some recognize.
Avid Christmas enthusiast and mom Allyson Davidson said, “Even though preparing for Christmas is a lot of work, creating the spirit of Christmas in my home and seeing my kids’ faces on Christmas morning makes it all worth it.”
There is a recent phenomenon called elf on the shelf where there is an elf that resides in one’s house from December 1st until Christmas. As the legend goes, the elf flies home every night and reports back to Santa on how kids are behaving and the things they want for Christmas.
As amazing as having a personal Santa reporter would be, the secret behind the elf on the shelf is parents moving it every night and creatively trying to set up fun places to hide him or little “traps” he may set.
Some parents have had the elf drinking chocolate milk, brushing his teeth, or even eating cookies for the kids to wake up to in the morning. The joy of little kids as they look around the house for their elf is something that is treasured by homes all across the world.
The work for parents only gets more burdening from there. Whether it be setting up the elf on the shelf every night, going to Santa’s workshop- also know as Target to get all the things on the Christmas wish list, Christmas is a month to even a month and a half long holiday. Parents are constantly getting packages and wrapping every present they can, so they are not up late on Christmas Eve.
Although shopping, wrapping and receiving presents may be one of the highlights for this time of year there is so much more to the spirit of Christmas than just presents and Santa Claus.
Senior Michael Sampson said, “I think that Christmas is the most joyful time of the year because I view it as a holiday to spend genuine time with my friends and family. Spending time with them is more fun and celebrating holiday traditions is more rewarding than giving and getting presents.”
Giving gifts and Santa’s “duties” are bigger than any Christmas legend; the idea of Santa is to fill people’s minds and hearts with joy by giving presents and spending time with friends and family. Santa needs to make millions of kids around the world wake up to a happy heart and that same Christmas excitement every year.
While Santa is not real and parents are the one who creates that Christmas joy, they are the ones helping Santa fulfill his duty in a job that would be otherwise impossible. Santa is a team of parents all trying to generate Christmas spirit and a Christmas that each child won’t forget.
This year when all those presents are sitting under the tree Christmas morning, do not forget to remember who the real MVP’s are on Santa’s team and that the magic put into Christmas is a job that cannot be done by just anyone.
