Fr Vincent Stapleton pens a letter to Santa Claus

MOST ILLUSTRIOUS ST NICHOLAS

Dear Santa,
It is a long, long time since I last wrote to you. I miss the exciting days of childhood when writing your letter was one of the magical moments leading up to Christmas.

Nowadays I share that joy by asking the young children in our schools what they put in their Santa-letters.

One little boy, with a look of glee on his face, recently told me that he filled two pages with his list of demands! I honestly don’t know how you get around to us all but that is the magic that you bring to this season. You help us to see life in a different, exciting and more wholesome way.

At a time when people are very concerned about unwanted burglars breaking in and taking valued possessions – along you come with no need to break in, and rather than stealing you flip the script and leave presents.

You always had a great love of children and the poor. When you were a Bishop, you loved to give secret presents, such as sacks filled with gold, to those who were in need. This is why God gave you the big Christmas job. Without you, the magic of Christmas would be very much lessened.

I have a few theories about how you are able to do it all in one night. If you tell me, I promise not to share the secret with anyone else. Is it true, for instance, that everything is done in heaven? And that the elves are actually angels? Do you really have a house and workshop in the North Pole or do you just land there when you are coming down from heaven? Do your reindeers have wings like Pegasus or do you give them some special oats that make them fly?

If you want to keep your secret that’s fine by me. But I think that what you do is one of the best ways to remember the true heart of Christmas.

Christmas is after all a big birthday party! We remember the greatest present that God ever gave us – the gift of his own little son, the baby Jesus. Jesus was a gift for all people and he truly carries us all. It is right that we celebrate and take time to think about these magical mysteries.

The problem with us adults is that we are weighed down by the heaviness of life. We have so many cares and responsibilities. The heaviness is very real for many people and they can find Christmas to be especially sad.

We need you Santa and we need the children to remind us of the power of the imagination and how important it is to play … that we are not always stuck in a rut … that there are new and adventurous ways to find a path in life, if only we can learn to see as children do … and that we recognise the gift and value of those around us and make the choice to enjoy the people we share this time with and the gifts that we have, rather than the ones we don’t.

Finally Santa, dear St. Nick, I may be a little bit old but is there any chance you could roll back the years and send me a little surprise. I promise to share it.

Nollaig Shona duit,
Fr. Vinny

A native of Borrisoleigh and a former primary school teacher, Fr Vincent Stapleton is a curate in Thurles parish and is Rector of St Josep and St Brigid's Church, Bóthar na Naomh, Thurles.