I am celebrating the spirit of Christmas with the #UnwrapChristmas blog chain. Thank you Dr Roshan Radhakrishnan for passing the baton of Christmas joy and spirit to me. Idea is to pass on the Christmas cheer from one to other by sharing our musings on what Christmas means to us.  

— § § § § § —
It was the same time last year. Dinner was over and we were about to call it a day. I
heard some tussle between my son and daughter. Brushing it off as just another
war of words, I did not pay much attention. It’s a usual scene that either the elder
bro or the little sis pulls the pranks on other and they end up with a war of
words. And it usually dies out with a laughter or “katti” ranting the air in their
bedroom.
That day, however, it was
little beyond that. The little one knocked on our bedroom door with a sobbing.
As she came near and hugged me, I could sense that there was a great emotional upheaval
happening inside the little head. “There is no Santa, I know. You all are
cheating me. You are doing all this to make sure that I am a good girl all
through out the year. Is it not Aai?”, grumbled the troubled soul.
“Why this thought, all of
sudden dear?”, I checked, taking a little cautious approach.
“Dada (elder brother) told
me while I was hanging my socks”, she replied.
Now I knew who the culprit
was. The elder one having crossed his age of believing in Santa Claus
distributing the gifts, had polluted the mind of the little one.
The moment was precious, gingerly
hanging between the belief and doubt, of faith and distrust.  It could have shattered the little one’s emotional
world or would have fortified it. All hanged in the balance, with my answer.
Wiping tears off her cheeks,
I first kissed her. With firm words, I responded, “The Santa Claus was real, is
real and will always be. He rewards small and big in different ways if one had
been good throughout the year. Just go ahead and hang your socks.”
Coming straight from mother,
the answer was a sign of the victory for the little one. By this time, the
elder one also had entered the room. The little one turned around with a twirl
and saw ‘Dada’. Sticking tongue out, waving hands animatedly and squinting her eyes, she mocked at him. The elder one stood with hands folded and
raised eyebrows. He waited till she was out of the room.
“Prove that Aai”, darted the
elder one at me.
Signalling him to come and
sit next to me on the bed, I said, “I need not prove it. You already have felt
the presence of Santa in your life too.”
“When and how?”, came the doubt
laden response.
“When you were a child, the
Santa was the one with a red hat, riding the reindeer.  He bought the goodies that you had thought of
as gifts. He wore a pleasing smile. And to earn those gifts you had tried best
to be a good boy through out the year. Growing up, the habit of being good or
doing good was ingrained in your character, courtesy Santa. And those good
deeds have returned to you in one form or the other as the gift”.
“Like?”, quizzed he, in a
tone which informed me that the doubt was waning away and faith had made an entry
into his world with firm steps.
“Remember you fell down on
the road while riding your cycle after stumbling on fallen branch. As you were
trying to get up on your feet, the bruises pained you. The vegetables that you
had bought from the market were strewn on the road. A hand held out in front of
you to get you on your feet. Same hands helped you collect and put the
vegetables back into your bag. Did you know him? Did he not wear a smiling
face? Was he not the Santa for you at that time to gift you the helping hand
when you needed the most. Was it not the gift of that moment?”
A smile line prevailed on
his face and he nodded in affirmation. I felt as if a little pixie dust was
showered on to him and it did its magic. He sat there next to me for another minute or so. I believe
many Santa faces might have flashed in front of his eyes and he was feeling grateful. “You
are right Aai. There is a Santa”, he said in a very positive tone. Continuing his
gaze at nothing in particular he added, “And you know Aai, even I have been
Santa to some!” Giving me a good night kiss he went back to his room.
I was happy that the faith about the goodness in the world had won the battle.
All these memories returned
to me this year, when the little one was excited when she got the circular about
the Christmas party from her school. She was excited to hang the socks again
and had whispered in my ears that she had requested Santa to gift her 20 comic
books if she had been a good girl all through out the year! The
Christmas joy and cheer continues in our household and I am sure it will forever!!!
“Faith is to believe what
you do not see; The reward of the faith is to see what you believe”, said Saint
Augustine. I believe in it whole heartedly, do you?
– § § § § § –

This post marks the end of the #UnwrapChristmas Blog chain and the beginning of Christmas cheer ahead. I am sure, dear readers that you had pleasure reading and reflecting on all the posts in the chain. I wish you and your family “Merry Christams” and “A Happy New Year”! Let the spirit of Christmas lasts in your life forever!!!
Linking this post to #MondayMommyMomments by Dr Amrita Basu of HealthwealthBridge.

 

All pictures courtesy Pixabay

 

Categories: ParentingReflections

29 Comments

Kala Ravi · December 25, 2017 at 2:39 pm

Absolutely loved your take on what Christmas means to you. Christmas brings out the children and innocence in us. It reiterates the inherent good in us. I am glad you were able to convince your children to believe in magic and also believe in the power of good deeds. Merry Christmas to you and yours!

    canvaswithrainbow · December 26, 2017 at 8:51 am

    Thank you Kala for visiting and sharing your thoughts on the topic.

Keerthi Vydyula · December 25, 2017 at 4:12 pm

Such a heart warming read Anagha! Loved it. You handled the situation like a pro (All mothers are so :-D) and restored their faith in good. We couldn't ask for a better windup to this amazing blog chain of #UnwrapChristmas !

    canvaswithrainbow · December 26, 2017 at 8:52 am

    On reading your comment I realized that it was the mother in me who had actually won courtesy Santa! Thanks Kheer for visiting and bringing this angle to my notice!

Shilpa Garg · December 26, 2017 at 8:41 am

What a lovely and a beautiful way to reaffirm the faith and trust of your kids in Santa. Loved it, Anagha!! ♥

    canvaswithrainbow · December 26, 2017 at 8:54 am

    Thank you Shilpa for visiting and appreciating my motherly instincts!

sreedeeps · December 26, 2017 at 8:43 am

Superb anecdote! Loved this take on Christmas. Season's Greetings!

Unknown · December 26, 2017 at 8:53 am

I true that Anagha. Santa is there somewhere always helping us and shares his smiles with us. He doesnt look for a time or day to bless just every day is good for him. As a child I once hung all the socks in the whole house, never got a gift but belief never left me 🙂

    canvaswithrainbow · December 26, 2017 at 8:56 am

    I think, Santa filled all your socks with hopes! Thanks for visiting and sharing your faith!

Varsh · December 26, 2017 at 12:12 pm

You're right. We all have met Santa in some or the other form. Lovely post, Anagha! ❤

    canvaswithrainbow · December 26, 2017 at 4:46 pm

    You said it Varsh. Santa need not come riding the sleigh…

Savita Shetty · December 26, 2017 at 1:54 pm

Wonderful post, your approach was/is simply marvellous!

    canvaswithrainbow · December 26, 2017 at 4:48 pm

    Thank you Savita for the praises. Honestly I feel the value system that we have been brought up with actually lets us see the world in simple form. Thanks to that!

Kshama Vengsarkar · December 26, 2017 at 7:12 pm

Thank you Anagha being Santa for me; brushing how patiently every situation to handle. ?

    canvaswithrainbow · December 27, 2017 at 3:53 am

    Haaha…Kshama I am blushing!!! Thanks for the complement dear.

Vinitha Dileep · December 27, 2017 at 4:29 am

Such a lovely way to explain Santa to kids. I absolutely loved it, Anagha. ?

    canvaswithrainbow · December 27, 2017 at 3:28 pm

    Thank you Vinitha for visiting. Glad that you liked it.

Shilpa Gupte · December 27, 2017 at 6:43 am

This post was just supremely beautiful Anagha! RIght now, as I type this comment, I have tears in my eyes..I am so overwhelmed by your words!
How true, we always have Santa in our life in the form of someone of the other, who help us in our time of need, bring a smile to our face and leave us feeling joyful from within! I so loved how you explained to your son about Santa.

And, I also loved that quote you added at the end…I am going to copy it down and read it each time I feel lost!

Thank you for this beautiful post, and wish you a very happy new year! <3

    canvaswithrainbow · December 27, 2017 at 3:32 pm

    Shilpa, I am glad that this post struck a chord with you. Faith quote is one that is very close to my heart. And it is very powerful and reassuring.
    Thanks for visiting and sharing your thoughts on secret Santas in our lives.

Ramya Rao · December 27, 2017 at 8:28 am

What a brilliant take on Christmas! One of the best reads today 🙂

    canvaswithrainbow · December 27, 2017 at 3:33 pm

    Oh so flattering Ramya! Thank you for visiting and appreciating my post.

Healthwealthbridge by Dr. Amrita Basu Misra · December 30, 2017 at 6:59 am

Yes I believe in Santa too.You are an amazing mom Anagha.That was one sticky situation.Being a mom is about reaffirming the faith .Thank you #MondayMommyMoments would be grateful for a mention on the post

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Dr. Uday Thanawala · August 12, 2019 at 4:27 pm

Just came across your blog recently. Love your posts!

    Anagha Yatin · August 12, 2019 at 4:31 pm

    Thank you Dr Thanawala for paying visit to my blog. I am glad to know that you liked my posts. Humbled by your kind words.

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