Ho Ho Ho

Because it’s December, I thought I would talk a little about Santa, and why I think he’s kind of great.

One of the neatest things about Santa Claus, is that just about anyone could pick him out of a line-up. He’s got a variety of looks, from the classic Coca-Cola image to the Old World Father Christmas- but you always know it’s him. He’s known around the world. He’s LOVED around the world. I don’t know of anyone else with such a unifying presence, fictional or real. Pop Culture icons like Elvis, The Beatles and Michael Jackson had a big scope, but their memory disappears a little bit every year. Santa is still going strong. I think his biggest competitor is Mickey Mouse, but somehow I suspect The Ears are still behind The Beard. In fact, Santa is someone Mickey likes to dress up as for Christmas, because EVERYONE loves Santa Claus.

And Santa loves EVERYONE. Santa is FOR everyone. He doesn’t care about what religion you are or aren’t. He doesn’t care what color you are, what language you speak, how much money you have. All he cares about is if you’ve been Naughty or Nice. And you don’t need to see his list to know where you fall on it. You really don’t. And if you don’t make the Nice list, he believes in second chances. Because there’s always next year.

Santa is flexible. There’s white Santa, there’s black Santa there’s redneck Santa and centaur Santa. There’s Fashion Santa, and If you can imagine it, Santa has worn it, somewhere on the internet. And he’s still Santa. He speaks all languages, and can sign too. He’ll do whatever it takes to listen to you, and find out what you want for Christmas. If only more people took the trouble to learn to communicate with others so well.

And people DO, because they’re inspired by Santa’s example. There are millions of people in the world who take up the mantle of Santa, who put on that hat and beard and bring joy to the people around them. There’s a documentary I watched on Netflix recently, called “Becoming Santa” (2011), which gives you a great view of the journey one man took to be transformed into Santa Claus, and his first year appearing as him. There are Santa Schools. There’s Santa charities. There’s Santa Suit rental companies. There are websites dedicated to the folks who portray Santa , to support each other and share their experiences.

I only wish there was a female equivalent who had as much recognition. Sure, there’s Mrs. Claus (sometimes named Holly), but she seems to get far less of the Rock Star treatment Santa does. Right now, Elsa from Frozen seems to be filling that gap for a female Winter icon, but her fame will fade, too. Because nothing really holds a candle to Santa Claus. Oh, and there are women who dress up as Santa, too, because they know it.

We could certainly see Mrs. Claus step up and get more recognition in the future, or maybe another member of the Claus family, like a daughter. Because another great thing about Santa Claus? His mythology is continuously building! Every Christmas provides inspiration to creative minds across the world, and we tack new things on to Santa’s life and world, from Jack Skellington to Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. Elf. The Santa Clause. The Polar Express. Elf on a Shelf (though that one kind of hurts me). And no one minds that these editions keep growing. No one is saying “this is the one and only true Santa Claus story, none of the others count!”

I think that last bit is one of the best things, actually. It’s the part that really makes Santa Claus someone for everyone.