This year I got to do something for the Christmas season that I've never done before. I got to play Santa at my family's Pre-school. The guy they regularly get had a scheduling problem, so I was asked if I could fill in. I said sure. When the day arrived I arrived and went into my Grandparents' old house to change. Apparently the person that they had borrowed the Santa costume from was a BIT shorter than me because the pants only came to about 3-4 inches below my knees. Now I realize that they were probably meant to be short so you could tuck them into the boots, but with the boots on, I would still be showing far to much leg for Santa. Luckily my Grandma had an old Santa suit with longer pants. Then came the second size issue. The boots were a full size too small. It took a huge effort to finally pull them on my feet, but even that task was finally completed and then it was just the finishing touches. At one point, my wife came in and I asked her if I needed a pillow to which she quickly said NO. (not quite sure how to respond to that) Finally the time came to go out and meet the children. I spent the next two hours sitting and visiting with the kids. It really was a fun experience. The kids would come in groups of about 4 and I would have about a minute with each.
There were two kids that stand out. The first was a little girl. (all the kids were 4 years old, by the way) This little girl came up and sat on my lap and I talked to her the way Santa alway talks to children. When I finally asked her what she wanted for Christmas, she kind pulled away and looked at me funny. She then said, "I've already told you like three other times." It was really hard not to bust right out laughing. I thought quickly and told her that I talk to soo many children this time of year that that is why I always check lists twice. She seemed to accept that. Of all the responces I thought I may get, THAT was NOT one of them.
The second was a very cool experience. This time it was a little boy. Before I go into that I need to set up something. Sitting next to me were three bins(bags) with little toys labeled "boy", "girl," or "nutral." As each child was through, a helper would give a present to the child and then the child would go to a table and open the gift. This particular group came when my helper was taking a potty break. The boy came up and we exchanged pleasentries for a bit and then I asked the magic question. He told me that he really wanted a toy bow and arrow set. I told him that a toy bow and arrow is a big responsibility and that if he got one he was never to shoot it at anyone. He nodded his head and said, "Oh, I know!" I wished him Merry Christmas and reached in the bin labeled for boys and gave him his little gift. He wa the last in the group so I was able to watch him open the gift. It turned out to be a small toy bow and arrow set. He just looked at it for a second then back at me. I gave him an exagerated wink and he beamed! I think this particular boy may believe in Santa well into his thirties. It was fun to see the magic for him. All in all, it was a fun way to spend a couple of hours. I tried to be more than a standard "what do you want for Christmas" Santa, but talk about what they had asked for, or if they asked for something I knew a little bit about I could expand on it with them. My geekiness really helpped out there. When I finished I went back to the room where they had all gathered and wished them all a Merry Christmas one last time.
Then I went back in the old house and had to get those small boots actually off my feet. haha
