Volume 2, Issue 2 University of Houston
There's a little Santa in everybody
Brandon Franks
It's Christmas time for many of us. With Christmas comes shopping, presents and the man ? the man in the big red suit. Santa Claus.
Now, being in college and all grown-up we may say there's no such thing as Santa. It's just a myth for little kids, and our parents always put those gifts under the tree and in our stockings.
But are we wrong in saying this? No one has ever disproved there being a Santa Claus. We have never seen an attempt to go to the North Pole and search for Santa's Workshop.
There may have been an actual Santa back in the 1700s, but no one is alive to tell us about him.
Is Santa really fat? Does he like red that much? What if he preferred yellow or green?
Here's one for you. Is Santa really white or is he what some advertiser decided to make him? Maybe he's black or Hispanic. Maybe Santa isn't Mr. Claus. Maybe he's Mrs. Claus.
Santa is what Santa does. Santa is whatever we make him out to be. He can be from any part of the world. He can be black, white, female or whatever. Santa could even be Jewish!
I know what you're probably thinking, "Brandon, how can Santa be Jewish?" I'll tell you how.
Santa Claus is a real person because we all are Santa Claus. No matter who you are or what you believe, if you care enough to give at Christmas, you are Santa.
Giving back to your community, giving to charity or helping those less fortunate have a better Christmas, means you're doing what Santa does.
By doing this you spread good cheer to those you've helped. So you see it doesn't matter who you are. If you care, you're Santa.
Now as for the elves, that's a whole different thing. If Santa is everywhere, then maybe the elves can be considered those kids in sweatshops in various parts of the world.
Think about it. In order to make all those gifts that Santa brings to the boys and girls, the elves have to work night and day nonstop.
Do they get paid? No! What do they get? A bunch of reindeer dung to clean up!
That's right, elves don't even get paid. Santa sits there and lets this happen, and if we are all Santa then we let all the sweatshops happen.
This is not a soapbox for me to preach on high to all y'all. I'm just letting you know that with Santa comes the good ... as well as the bad. Maybe we should go further than Santa and try to stop the corruption in this world.
How I don't know. That's where y'all come in. If
we all come together to stop the corruption in the world then maybe everyone
in the world can have a happy holiday season.
Franks, a junior communications major, can be reached at bhfranks@hotmail.com.