Dear editor:
As the Christmas season approaches, I am reminded of that great Christmas fantasy -- Santa Claus.
"Is There a Santa Claus?" was the title of an editorial appearing in the Sept. 21, 1897, edition of The New York Sun. The editorial, which included the famous reply, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus," has become an indelible part of popular Christmas lore in the United States and Canada
A quote from this editorial states:
"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The external light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.
"Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world."
In this world we need our fantasies as long as we realize that they are what they are -- fantasies. They can enrich our lives as long as we do not make them the focus of our lives. Santa is the only cultural icon we have who is male, does not carry a gun and is all about peace, joy, giving and caring for other people. He is not trying to save anyone -- he just wants us to be happy and live fulfilling lives. If the people of the world could realize that dream, we would all be the better for it. That is why I cling to a belief in Santa Claus and the hope for a better world. I realize that it is a virtually impossible dream, but we can all dream can't we.
Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.
Mike Nunn
Hot Springs
Editorial on 12/17/2014