25 Days of Christmas continues with Liz Botts!
Liz:
My
husband and I fully encourage our children’s belief in Santa Claus.
We
encourage the belief because the magic of childhood is so fleeting.
This year so far we have celebrated Santa arriving in town, visited
with Santa, and mailed letters to Santa. And of course there is more
Santa fun to be had. We will make reindeer food and track Santa on
NORAD. This year Santa is leaving pages from his “Nice List” for
the kids to discover on Christmas morning. Our kids know that
Christmas isn’t all about Santa and presents, but it is a part of
our holiday traditions.
I
keep thinking that soon, too soon, one of their cousins will tell
them Santa doesn’t exist, that we are the ones that leave gifts
under the tree. And then what will we
tell them?
One
of my favorite responses to whether or not Santa exists is an opinion
piece printed in 1897 in the New York Sun, commonly known as “Yes,
Virginia, There is a Santa Claus.”
My
favorite part is this: “Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as
well not believe in fairies! You might get your papa to hire men to
watch in all the chimneys on Christmas Eve to catch Santa Claus, but
even if they did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that
prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no
Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither
children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the
lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there.
Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and
unseeable in the world.”
Read
more of the original editorial here:
http://www.newseum.org/yesvirginia/
I
think I will read them this, and reaffirm that believing is still
okay.
When
I was writing my Christmas novella, Believe,
this editorial echoed through my head. My main character even shares
the name Virginia.
Blurb:
Eighteen year old
Virginia didn't ask to be the oldest daughter of the current Santa
Claus, nor did she ask to be betrothed to a complete stranger. When
the elf elders turn her world upside down by announcing that she must
convince her fiance, Nick, not only to marry her but also to become
the next Santa Claus, Virginia has no desire to have any part of the
craziness.
From the beginning
Virginia's interactions with Nick are filled with awkwardness,
tension and disbelief. Despite Nick's love of the holiday he has no
openness to the magical or the mythical. Still, somehow the two forge
their way toward one another. Meeting a special little girl named
Merry helps Nick and Virginia bond and focus on the true meaning of
the Christmas season. Virginia quickly grows to love and trust Nick,
with the only dark spot being his disbelief in all the things she
tells him. Nick for his part must come to grips with meeting his real
father, the King of Winter, and the fact that he does indeed possess
magic.
Will the Nick and
Virginia be able to overcome all of the exterior forces seeming to
control their lives and fall in love with one another in time to save
the future of Christmas?
Excerpt:
“You have to marry
me.” My fists curl into balls at my sides as flames of
embarrassment shoot through my body, consuming my face in bright red.
All amusement leaves
Nick’s face. He frowns at me, but doesn’t move. “Look, I don’t
know
what kind of joke this is, but I think it’s time for you to leave.”
what kind of joke this is, but I think it’s time for you to leave.”
“No, wait, I…”
I take another step forward. None of this is coming out the way I
want it too. How can I explain this to him? No one has given me any
guidance. I feel my skirt snag on a branch from the fake Christmas
tree. Before I know what’s happening, I fly forward landing
squarely on Nick’s lap.
He catches me, pulls
me calmly down on one knee, and looks directly into my eyes. “What
is it that you really want?”
The question hangs
between us. I’m struggling with what to say when there is a knock
at the door. A teenage elf girl pokes her head through and gasps.
When she recovers
she says, “You are holding up the line.”
If it is possible
for my face to get redder, it does. I scramble off of Nick’s lap,
where I am barely perched, and flee out the exit door. That went
spectacularly wrong. I’ve humiliated myself. And I have failed.
What are the elf elders going to do to me? I shiver, trying to stave
off the fear by thinking of anything else. Unfortunately my thoughts
slide to the deep blue of Nick’s eyes and the joyful laugh that
made me want to believe in him. Believe in him as Santa. I stop
mid-stride on a sidewalk filled with kids, my mini-epiphany of little
concern to them. What am I going to do now?
Buy
links:
Barnes
and Noble:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/believe-liz-botts/1107745044?ean=2940013541184&itm=18&usri=believe
About
the Author:
Liz
Botts was born, raised, and still lives in northern Illinois with her
husband and three small children (two boys and a baby girl). When not
writing, she enjoys reading, sewing, trying new recipes, and hanging
with her kids. She is proud to pass her love of stories on to her
children, and makes several trips to the library each week. After
working with teenagers for several years, she decided to write
stories about them instead.
Website:
www.lizbotts.com
This really sounds like a fun story! Thanks for a taste of it.
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