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People think the child like wonder and awe in the supernatural like tooth faeries and Santa are cute. Personally I remember the day I realized the Santa farce a

People think the child like wonder and awe in the supernatural like tooth faeries and Santa are cute. Personally I remember the day I realized the Santa farce and I was quite disappointed and honestly felt betrayed. I never told my parents this but swore to never present Santa as anything other than a symbol if I had children.

swatcoder 2y ago
The more heartening lesson one might take is that we can each infuse the world with delight, community, and excitement by consciously engaging in the traditions, rituals, and fantasies that provide those to us. Rather than becoming disillusioned by learning that reality is so mundane that Santa doesn't even exist, one can become empowered by learning that whether or not the world feels mundane is something we can control ourselves. Most kids won't be able to come to that conclusion on their own, of course, so it's a bummer that it seems like nobody was able to convey that to you and that you just felt pointlessly betrayed instead. I hope you've found other ways to teach your own kids the underlying lesson.
- c22 2y ago
  I don't know that engaging with santa as a symbol really jeopordizes this ideology in any meaningful way.
c22 2y ago
I had a similar experience when I was younger and made a similar resolve. Unfortunately my spouse considered it very important to produce and maintain this deception so I took a hands-off approach and simply didn't engage with the ruse. I put presents under the tree with recepients addressed, but no from field. When the children got old enough to actually ask me directly about it I told them the truth (and got some flak for it from my partner). Fortunately by that time other conversations I'd had with them about dragons, ghosts, and gods allowed them to integrate this knowledge in what I believe to be a pretty healthy way, but I've always felt uneasy about this casual dismissal of children's agency.

swatcoder 2y ago

The more heartening lesson one might take is that we can each infuse the world with delight, community, and excitement by consciously engaging in the traditions, rituals, and fantasies that provide those to us. Rather than becoming disillusioned by learning that reality is so mundane that Santa doesn't even exist, one can become empowered by learning that whether or not the world feels mundane is something we can control ourselves. Most kids won't be able to come to that conclusion on their own, of course, so it's a bummer that it seems like nobody was able to convey that to you and that you just felt pointlessly betrayed instead. I hope you've found other ways to teach your own kids the underlying lesson.

c22 2y ago
I don't know that engaging with santa as a symbol really jeopordizes this ideology in any meaningful way.

c22 2y ago

I had a similar experience when I was younger and made a similar resolve. Unfortunately my spouse considered it very important to produce and maintain this deception so I took a hands-off approach and simply didn't engage with the ruse. I put presents under the tree with recepients addressed, but no from field. When the children got old enough to actually ask me directly about it I told them the truth (and got some flak for it from my partner). Fortunately by that time other conversations I'd had with them about dragons, ghosts, and gods allowed them to integrate this knowledge in what I believe to be a pretty healthy way, but I've always felt uneasy about this casual dismissal of children's agency.