Beyond the Byline: Don’t fear Santa — be like him

WILKES-BARRE — When I see a child in fear of Santa Claus, it makes me sad.

Do these kids realize the risk they are taking? If they don’t tell Santa what they would like for Christmas, chances are they are going to be very disappointed come Christmas Day.

Can you imagine a child waking up, running to the decorated Christmas tree and standing there staring at zero presents under the tree?

Wait — what?

Well, you should have sat on Santa’s lap and told him what you wanted for Christmas instead of running away crying. That would have been the path of least resistance.

Now, because of this “Santa-phobia,” these children will have to rely on their grandparents, aunts and uncles to bring them gifts. But who wants a sweater, a pair of gloves, or an umbrella?

These Santa-fearing kids need some pre-Santa visit counseling. They need to be told, in no uncertain terms, that despite the gaudy red and white suit and the long white beard and hair, Santa is a really jolly old elf.

So parents, tell them! Prepare them for this visit so they can bravely walk right up to the big guy with the booming voice shouting, “Ho, Ho, Ho, and jump up on his lap and spew out all the stuff they have on their list.

Trust me, your kids will be glad you took the time to prepare them for Santa.

There should be no fear in visiting Santa Claus. Yes, kids should be forewarned that they better be good, for goodness sake. Make them aware that Santa is always watching and he knows if you’ve been bad or good. Just let them know that their good behavior will result in a very Merry Christmas.

And this brings me to that tattletale, the Elf on the Shelf.

It was reported last week that Elf on the Shelf dolls are flying off the shelves, which, would be a good thing if they weren’t ending up in homes across the country to scare the heck out of children.

It’s a good thing the Elf on the Shelf wasn’t around when I was a kid. The kids in my neighborhood would never have stood for that little rat being around their houses, spying on us and ruining our Christmas holiday.

Hey, we were accountable to the only elf that counts — Santa Claus. We would go to wherever Santa was set up, wait in line and sit on his lap to tell him all we wanted, not expected, for Christmas. Santa would listen attentively, then before releasing us back to our parents, he would issue his warning.

“OK, now be good, or you will get coal in your stocking! Ho, Ho, Ho!”

That was more than enough for us. We did not need a tattletale elf to spy on us. We knew Santa was watching — always. He knew when we were naughty and nice.

My buddies would gather — Chrissy the Crier, Wally the Wailer, Willie the Whiner, Stevie the Smiler, George the Drummer and Mikey the Kid — to devise a plan. We would never tolerate that Elf rat. He would mysteriously disappear from our houses, like when the TV Yellowstone crew delivers an unwanted cast member to “the train station.”

The point here is that Santa is real, and he knows everything. And another thing — Santa doesn’t like that Elf on the Shelf guy. He said it gives elves a bad reputation. Santa said elves don’t decide or advise Santa on which kids have been good or bad. He said the elves have enough to do. They have again been working around the clock at the North Pole to make sure every kid’s wish is granted. The elves don’t have time to sit on any shelves.

We knew that Santa — the king of all elves — would be watching us 24/7/365.

The only worse threat that our parents would level at us dealt with sending us to Kis-Lyn, where all very bad kids would go and be incarcerated. We did not want to go there, and we did not want to ever get on Santa’s naughty list.

This is a call-out to parents to prepare your children for a visit to Santa Claus. Make them aware of the goodness that is Santa and the benefits of being a good little boy or girl.

Then get them ready and head out to wherever Santa is and get in line. Get those pictures that will be treasured for years and years.

Maybe even sit down at the kitchen table and prepare a list to hand to Santa when you visit him. Parents should keep a copy just in case Santa needs help.

Let’s hope all kids can receive a special gift or two from Santa. Maybe we can help Santa out with seeing to that as well.

Christmas is a time of giving, not just receiving. It’s a time of gathering and sharing and being thankful for all we have.

We all want to celebrate and enjoy the holidays, but we also should take time to remember those who are not able to celebrate or enjoy and we should do all we can to help where we can.

Santa can only do so much.

This holiday season, bring out the Santa in you.