Being Santa Claus : What I Learned About the True Meaning of Christmas (9781101600528) by Jonathan Sal; Lane Lizard, Jonathan Lane Page B
Authors: Jonathan Sal; Lane Lizard, Jonathan Lane
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me, generally with a parent holding their hand. But one little girl, probably about four years old, came running up to me at full speed in a mall in Massachusetts. Before I could even react, she catapulted up onto my lap, threw her arms around my neck, and started hugging me. So I hugged her back. After half a minute or so, I let go, assuming she would turn around and start talking to Santa, as most kids tended to do.
But she didn’t stop hugging me.
I gave her another little hug and let go again. She still continued to hug me, very tightly. By this point, the girl’s mother had walked up to the big chair, watching all this with a wide grin on her face. I smiled back and said, rather amusedly, “She’s not letting go!”
Her mother continued smiling. “She loves you, Santa. As a matter of fact, when I asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she told me that she just wanted to hug Santa. So I asked her what she wanted Santa to bring her for Christmas, and she said she didn’t know. She just wanted to hug Santa. That’s all she kept saying; she just wanted to hug Santa.”
That left me at a loss for words. After another minute or so, I asked the little girl, “So, is there anything special you want to tell Santa Claus?”
And she kept right on hugging me, without saying anything.
Another minute passed, and I said to her mother inan apologetic tone, “I don’t know how we’re going to get the picture.”
Without missing a beat, the mother said, “Honey, turn around for the picture.” The little girl immediately let go of my neck, spun around on my lap, and leaned against me so the photographer could snap the picture. Then, right after the flash went off, she resumed her determined embrace.
Despite my multiple attempts to start a conversation with her, this little girl never uttered a single word. Eventually her mother said, “Okay, honey, let’s go.”
With that, the little girl hopped off my lap. As she began walking down the carpet, she suddenly stopped, turned to face me, and said, “I love you, Santa.” Then she turned back around and tottered off with her mother.
As I watched the two of them walk away, I thought to myself, as I have hundreds of times since,
Yes, indeed…I definitely have the most wonderful job in the world.
BESIDES BEING GOOD FOR THE SOUL, BEING Santa is downright fun. My research is
toys
, for goodness’ sake!
Santa Claus needs to be the ultimate expert on toys, after all, so I do lots of research. A child might come up and ask me for a perennial favorite like an American Girl doll, of which there are many kinds. I’ll nod and say, “Which one?” Imagine the look on a little girl’s facewhen I suggest that she might want Molly, who has brown hair just like she does, or Julie, who is from San Francisco where the little girl lives, or whichever new doll just came out that year. Sure, many boys want the ever-popular Optimus Prime Transformers action figure, but I need to be just as knowledgeable about Bumblebee, Wheeljack, or Starscream (just to name a few), in case I get a rogue request. I’ve also done my homework on the classics and know lots about the history of favorites like Barbie, G.I. Joe, and Slinky, which never fails to amaze my young visitors.
In order to keep my expert status, I constantly read up on the hot new toys online and subscribe to every toy catalog you can imagine. Throughout the year, I’ll slip into the toy departments at Target, Walmart, or the big toy stores like Toys“R”Us to see what’s front and center on the shelves. I try to do these visits on the sly, early in the morning or late at night, so the children don’t see me.
A couple of times during the year, however, I go to the toy stores during the daytime to get an idea of what children really like, straight from the source. While I’m there—especially if it’s near Christmastime—the kids inevitably mob me, even though I’m dressed in regular clothes. The funny thing is that
But she didn’t stop hugging me.
I gave her another little hug and let go again. She still continued to hug me, very tightly. By this point, the girl’s mother had walked up to the big chair, watching all this with a wide grin on her face. I smiled back and said, rather amusedly, “She’s not letting go!”
Her mother continued smiling. “She loves you, Santa. As a matter of fact, when I asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she told me that she just wanted to hug Santa. So I asked her what she wanted Santa to bring her for Christmas, and she said she didn’t know. She just wanted to hug Santa. That’s all she kept saying; she just wanted to hug Santa.”
That left me at a loss for words. After another minute or so, I asked the little girl, “So, is there anything special you want to tell Santa Claus?”
And she kept right on hugging me, without saying anything.
Another minute passed, and I said to her mother inan apologetic tone, “I don’t know how we’re going to get the picture.”
Without missing a beat, the mother said, “Honey, turn around for the picture.” The little girl immediately let go of my neck, spun around on my lap, and leaned against me so the photographer could snap the picture. Then, right after the flash went off, she resumed her determined embrace.
Despite my multiple attempts to start a conversation with her, this little girl never uttered a single word. Eventually her mother said, “Okay, honey, let’s go.”
With that, the little girl hopped off my lap. As she began walking down the carpet, she suddenly stopped, turned to face me, and said, “I love you, Santa.” Then she turned back around and tottered off with her mother.
As I watched the two of them walk away, I thought to myself, as I have hundreds of times since,
Yes, indeed…I definitely have the most wonderful job in the world.
BESIDES BEING GOOD FOR THE SOUL, BEING Santa is downright fun. My research is
toys
, for goodness’ sake!
Santa Claus needs to be the ultimate expert on toys, after all, so I do lots of research. A child might come up and ask me for a perennial favorite like an American Girl doll, of which there are many kinds. I’ll nod and say, “Which one?” Imagine the look on a little girl’s facewhen I suggest that she might want Molly, who has brown hair just like she does, or Julie, who is from San Francisco where the little girl lives, or whichever new doll just came out that year. Sure, many boys want the ever-popular Optimus Prime Transformers action figure, but I need to be just as knowledgeable about Bumblebee, Wheeljack, or Starscream (just to name a few), in case I get a rogue request. I’ve also done my homework on the classics and know lots about the history of favorites like Barbie, G.I. Joe, and Slinky, which never fails to amaze my young visitors.
In order to keep my expert status, I constantly read up on the hot new toys online and subscribe to every toy catalog you can imagine. Throughout the year, I’ll slip into the toy departments at Target, Walmart, or the big toy stores like Toys“R”Us to see what’s front and center on the shelves. I try to do these visits on the sly, early in the morning or late at night, so the children don’t see me.
A couple of times during the year, however, I go to the toy stores during the daytime to get an idea of what children really like, straight from the source. While I’m there—especially if it’s near Christmastime—the kids inevitably mob me, even though I’m dressed in regular clothes. The funny thing is that
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