Does Daddy Know?

By

Marcella Kampman

My son was ten years old at the time. He was tall for his age and often mistaken for being much older than his years, but inside he still had the heart of a little child. And Christmas was fast approaching.

He waited until we were alone in the car one day, away from his younger sister and brother, before he turned to me and asked that most critical of questions, "Mommy, is there really a Santa Claus?"

Now I had my answer all worked out, in anticipation of this momentous day, and I replied in all honesty, "There is no real man that is Santa Claus. Santa Claus is the spirit of Christmas, and when we exchange gifts then all of us become Santa Clauses on that special day." I saw him nod sagely, and I was proud of how my little boy was taking this information. Truth be told, it had been harder for me to be the one to break the news to him. Though I must admit I was somewhat taken aback when I mentioned casually that the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy weren’t real either, for I could see in his eyes that he hadn’t made that connection yet.

He sat still for a minute, digesting this information, then asked, "But what about St. Nicholas? Is he real?"

So I explained how celebrating St. Nicholas Day on the sixth of December was a Dutch tradition and that was why at bedtime the kids would put their slippers outside their doors for St. Nicholas to fill with goodies.

"So who is St. Nicholas?" he asked.

"Who’s the Dutch one in the family?" I asked back.

"You." And then his eyes went wide. "Mommy, are you St. Nicholas?" At my nod of confirmation he asked, in a conspiratorial whisper, "Does daddy know?"