I still believe.

I searched through my entire cedar chest twice for a letter my brother and I received many Christmases ago. I really wanted to share the letter with you, it was written by Santa Claus, and it was one of the Christmases that I will always most remember. Unfortunately, I could not unearth the letter from all of my “treasures.” I just know I am going to do a horrible job of recreating it, but I will try to summarize as best I can.

My brother and I had been smart alecks that year, we were too “old” to believe in Santa, and could be heard exclaiming “there is no such thing as a Santa.”

Picture our surprise when we raced downstairs to an empty tree and a letter that simply started out, “To All Non-Believers…”

As I said, I’ll never be able to re-create the letter, but it went on to tell of the importance of believing in Santa. That that “belief” enabled the giver to feel that anticipation, the excitement and the true joy at seeing the happiness their gift brings someone they love. It is that giving that Christmas is all about. By not believing, we were in fact taking that joy away from the giver.

I can honestly say that I still get teary when I think of the letter that defined the true meaning of Christmas and of giving for me. (And no, it wasn’t because we didn’t get any presents! As soon as it was deemed that we had fully understood the letter, our gifts appeared.)

But as I sit and wait with the twinkling lights of the tree, munching on cookies, I can’t believe the giddiness I feel, that same excitement that my Santa wrote about nearly 20 years ago. Having the girls takes Christmas to a whole new magical level.

I still believe.

I wish all of you the same feeling of peace, happiness and love this blessed day. Merry Christmas.