[Opinion] Where is Santa ……..?

I happened to overhear a dialogue of my two kids before Christmas. The 12 year old, first son, seemed waiting for the Santa`s visit this year, but 7 year old daughter told her brother, "Oh, you still believe in Santa Clause? You should know better at your age." Then I said to my daughter, "Why, Santa visited our apartment last year." But she responded that "the Santa was a Santa-outfitted chauffeur from the pre-school." She probably knew who put the presents by the bedside every year.

I was lost for words in front of this precocious realist. Perhaps, my son also knows it, but is just intentionally pretending innocent to enjoy his short childhood.

I have read a new report that an Australian teacher, who told there was no such Santa Clause, was dismissed charged with stripping the dreams of children.

In this sense, Korean parents may be blamed for failing to keep the dreams and myths of children. But the juvenile mind cannot be judged by their belief in Santa Clause. Perhaps, it is the commercialists who are trying to make children to believe in Santa Clause.

Once again this year, the children, who had waited for Santa Clause, received Harry Potter game machine, DDR pump, and so forth.

However, the Santa Clause seemed not be paying attention to `children who are little more older`. Hearing that 3 in 4 college graduates did not find their job this year, I wander why there is no Santa Clause for them who can give them jobs. The government and the business have failed to provide a miraculous countermeasure for the problem of youth unemployment.

When there is no signal for the economic recovery and the vacant jobs are filled with experienced applicants, there may be no room for the beginners. Those graduates who handed in dozens of résumés with no response might be experiencing blue Christmas.

In addition, the orphanages and nursing homes are experiencing a gradual decrease in helping hands. Since my mother worked as a secretary in an orphanage, I spent my youth in the social welfare organization. In that period, I was a bit annoyed with the people from several groups who visited the orphanage and took pictures.

But now, people do not visit such social welfare organizations, shadow of a society, even for their own propaganda. Every one may live tough life these days for many different reasons.

Such cooled Christmas seems to reflect the economic recession of Korea. The Christmas decorations of the streets seem not so bright as usual and the shoppers in the department stores have decreased. The U.S. citizens also enjoyed their Christmas with their families after 9.11 rather than shopping. While it seems more mature than holding extravagant parties, I hope it that this state of mind is not a frozen one. Even though it is very difficult to concern about others when one has his or her own predicaments, such consolations and supports are more necessary for this season than any other time.

Some calculated that over 160 million children over the world are waiting for Santa Clause. Santa has only 0.0007 seconds to stay at a family to visit all the children, and particularly, it took a little more time in Korea because of the parking problem. Therefore, many parents, who did not want to break the belief in Santa of their children, might have played a `hidden Santa`.

It would be much more wonderful if they become Santas for other children as well and if the Santas gave good news to the older children who can`t even wait for Santa as well as the precocious children who pretend to be waiting for Santa.