h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

when my daughter came home from school around the age of 7, she asked me whether 'we' her parents were Santa....it really put me in a quandry, for all her life we had taught her not to lie, and here we were caught out telling her a 'whopper'!!! I can't remember now what I told her, whatever it was did the trick - but her reply was: "Huh, I s'pose the same goes for the tooth fairy does it?" (Clever cookie, eh?) She was OK about it when she realized she would still get presents and money.....When it comes to it, is the magic of the Santa thing really for the adults or the children?

When I was old enough to be told the truth, I think I first heard it at school - the playground's such a wealth of information. I, of course, went home and confronted Mom. She told me that there really had been a Saint Nicholas, and the Santa legend grew out of his goodness and kindness. She also told me that the myth lives on in the hearts and minds of good and caring people, even after they know the truth. Then she told me not to tell my kid brother, let him live with it a while longer. Mom's attitude was that Santa, the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny were harmless, and promoted goodness and giving. There's a lot of bad out there, and there are worse things to believe in.