“Alas! How dreary would be the world if there was no Santa Claus!… There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence.”

— Francis P. Church

Santa sure gives a lot.

He not only gives presents to all the little boys and girls, but runs a vast complex of toy-making factories, manages a distribution system that makes FedEx, UPS, and US Postal Service look like rank amateurs, deals efficiently with inter-governmental customs departments, maintains a herd of unruly quadrupeds, and still finds time to listen carefully to the wishes of every single child on the planet.

Plus, he does it with a chuckle on his lips and smile in his heart.

Oh sure, Santa Claus may be a figment of our collective imaginations, but the spirit of generosity is not. It is real as our problems and our troubles. It is as real as Christmas trees, lights, and presents. Generosity is as real as we make it.

I hope that you believe in the magic of giving to others, and the joy that it can bring to you and your loved ones. I hope that in your own way, you’ve discovered the special feeling you get when you give freely, without expectation. And I hope that you believe in it strongly enough to act with a spirit of generosity and compassion not just on Christmas, but on every day of the year.

If we so choose it in our hearts, and in our actions, we are all Santa Claus.

Yesterday’s gift of time … just household chores and a little last minute shopping for the kids.