Santa has been asked to share with everyone some of his stories. I will be doing a series of articles about some of the things I have seen and heard over the years, stories about the kids and the adults, and the letters he has received. There will be some that will make you smile and laugh and then some will touch your heart and make you cry.
I have decided to start with the light side. I am asked often about the weirdest things kids have asked for. I will try to answer some of that. I am reminded of a young gal about 5 or 6 coming to see me. I had a large bag next to my chair for their letters. You always knew when the kids where coming with a letter. They held them tightly in their hands just waiting to give them to Santa. This gal was different. She came up and immediately dropped a sealed envelope into my bag. I would always try and read the letters with the kids, especially the older kids who had written it by themselves. Allot of time parents had no idea of what was in the letter. So I tried to find out what she had written me. She only said that she wanted me to read it when I got back the North Pole. After much cajoling, I got her to start talking to me. She said she wanted a magic wand for Christmas. One like Harry Potter I asked. Oh yes, that is what she wanted. Hmmm, that was going to be hard, because a Harry Potter wand required training and Santa couldn’t provide that. I told her I couldn’t remember if we had any fake wands but if we did would that be ok and she was fine with that. Not so funny yet you say. Well a couple of days later I was going through my mail bag and came across a sealed envelope. It said do not open till the North Pole. I knew exactly who this was from. The letter inside was neat and said:
Dear Santa,
For Christmas I want a magic wand so I can turn my mommy into a pig….
After picking myself up off the floor, I read the rest of the letter and it was totally normal. She had been good this year and would like a Barbie, books and a few other things.
Why she wanted to turn mom into a pig I will never know. But I get a smile every time I think of this story.
Fast forward a couple of years I had 2 brothers visit me and the older brother wanted a magic wand for Christmas. After I chuckled to myself and remembered the other gal, I asked him whatever did he want a magic wand for. He said that when his brother sleeps, he makes “crazy” noises. He wanted to make is brother smaller so that he would be quieter and then he could get some sleep himself.
Every year there are the hot toys that I get asked for. Video games and consoles are always at the top of the lists, including the kids that want several different ones. Girls usually want a Barbie or other dolls, boys want cars, trucks or legos. There was the young boy who wanted a riding lawnmower so he could cut the grass with dad and the boy who didn’t want to see me and then told me a fake name. There have requests for Santa to bring pianos which I don’t know how I would get down the chimney. There was the little boy who wanted a trophy for Christmas and the 4 year old that wanted a real telescope, mom said it was to replace one that had been broken. I have many stories and will share them in later stories.
Remember to keep the Spirit of Christmas alive in your heart all year long.