My youngest daughter, loves to tell me, how Ho Ho (as in, Santa Claus) is real. Last year she asked me very seriously, if indeed he is real. I told her that he is real in stories and people´s imaginations, but he does not exist in the real world. She went away, not that bothered by what I had told her, but a little while later she came back to tell me that her friend told her ,that he was real.
So I explained, that some parents choose to tell their children that he is real, but that I am not one of those parents. And yes, in case you have been wondering, I have been told that I am depriving my children of the magic of Christmas. But here´s the thing I don´t celebrate Christmas. Instead we celebrate Solstice.
I did as a child though and yes I remember getting excited by it. But here´s the thing, there are so many amazing things for our kids to get excited about in the world around them. I feel we should be nurturing their ability to really see the magic that surrounds them. To keep that excitement for the natural world, alive.
But there is no profit in that, lots for our children for sure, but not for those who wish to keep us all in line. So I stepped away from that line. We already have so much to celebrate in life, we don´t need to feed into or give energy to that materialistic side of it. To lie to our children, as we feed the hand that enslaves us.
You may think me a little harsh. But when I look at that picture, I see a child looking at and believing in a lie. All, whilst behind iron bars. Yes that is only my opinion. But it is one I feel strongly about. We all make our own decisions when it comes to raising our children and I see no need to lie to mine.
To introduce this idea, that some lies are okay, that sometimes it is okay to be deceived. But what is all of this building up to! We are conditioned from a young age and I want no part of that for my girls. Not if I can help it.
I find it unsettling that we tell our children not to talk to strangers. Yet sometimes force them to sit on the lap of one, for a photo. What sort of mixed message are we sending them.
Maybe, you think I am making too much of a big deal of this. That it´s all in the spirit of giving and receiving. In keeping our children´s imaginations alive. But I see it in a completely different light.
For me, I see how the focus for kids is on receiving something, on creating future consumers, cos it´s the things that they receive, that make them happy. There is another way you know, one where the focus can be on celebrating life itself and the natural world around us. Yes we can receive gifts, but more mindfully.
So my youngest tells me Ho Ho is real, cos she knows I don´t believe in him and she knows how to get my attention. She´s a clever one that one. All of my girls are, with super rich imaginations and curious minds, that are focused on their real world.
