Phantasy Star: Fringes of Algo

...in Santa Claus? C'mon, be honest!

Sorry, couldn't resist. Been itching to ask... As for me... Nope, my parents never said that there was one.

While I'm on the subject, do you believe this to be innocent fun for kids during their childhood, or is it just a lie in the end?

Sure I believed, errr, I mean "believe" in Santa!

To answer your other question, I think it can be innocent fun for children in some ways. It can also be explained so the children understand what is going on when they are old enough to understand and comprehend it all.

Every family is different, though, with their own beliefs and traditions and knows what works best for them and they must decide how they want to raise and teach their own children, etc.

Just as the kids do the fun gets old pretty fast. I don't think my little brother is falling for the santa thing. Plus all the shows that make fun of santa and whatnot aren't helping. I did, for a little while, I kinda figured it out though when one year the cookies were still there when we woke up but gone when we were opening presents, and the next year I watched as someone else took a bite of the cookies. XDDDDD

I did. There's nothing wrong with allowing children to believe, I think. It's just a way of making the season more fun and wonderous for them. It doesn't hurt anyone to believe in Santa.

Good points, everyone. I can see how this may be fun for kids, but I personally don't believe in lying to people you care about, no matter the reason (just my beliefs).

I don't look at it as lying. There was a real St. Nick and while his legend has been embellished quite a bit, I believe there really is a "Santa Claus." The character is supposed to be an embodiment of the Christmas spirit of giving. That's a spirit that does (or should) live in all of us at this time of year. We're all Santa when we give a heartfelt gift to someone.

I like the Santa trackers you can find on the computer. XD

Very good points, Thoul.

Thoul wrote:I don't look at it as lying. There was a real St. Nick and while his legend has been embellished quite a bit, I believe there really is a "Santa Claus." The character is supposed to be an embodiment of the Christmas spirit of giving. That's a spirit that does (or should) live in all of us at this time of year. We're all Santa when we give a heartfelt gift to someone.

My point is, the guy is dead.

So telling kids that there's some magical old man who comes into the house, leaves presents behind, then takes off with flying reindeer leaves kids with expectations, as they generally say what they want for Christmas and hope to get the said presents. Kids don't know that the money that's being spent on the gifts comes out their parents' pockets, too. :\

Tsunami wrote:

Thoul wrote: The character is supposed to be an embodiment of the Christmas spirit of giving. That's a spirit that does (or should) live in all of us at this time of year. We're all Santa when we give a heartfelt gift to someone.

My point is, the guy is dead.

Yeah, so the original "Saint Nickolaus", (or whatever you want to call him) may be dead! If he wasn't after all these years, he must trully be immortal.

Although, that is actually not that shocking or unaccepting of an idea, if you think about it. Especially in these days where there are wizards, warriors, magic, etc., in our movies, books, tv, and of course, video games, which kids are very knowledgeable about.

Hopefully, Kids of a certain age understand that these things are not "real" and I think they can understand the same concept regarding the history of "Santa" and the present reality of "Santa" when they are old enough, ready, and want to do so.

That doesn't mean that we can't enjoy those things and "believe in them in the moment" as we play the video game, watch tv, etc., so to speak, or even pretend to be Santa. Each person hopefully has the freedom to believe, or not to believe, in anything they choose.

So, it is up to those who are living to choose whether they wish to have, and carry out, the "Christmas spirit" each year, or not, thus carrying on a tradition which has been alive for hundreds of years. The story of "Santa" varies and changes but the thought behind it always remains the same - giving and love. There is no lie about that.

As I said before, it is up to each family to decide how they want to address the issue of "Santa" and they know what is best for them. The same thing goes for similar things such as The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy, etc. Most parents are fairly adept at guiding their children through the holiday stories, etc., and in the end letting the kids make up their own mind when they are old enough to do so.

Telling a lie is something that none of us want to do, but realistically many people do, even if under the guise of a "little white lie" perhaps told to someone close to us so we will not hurt their feelings because if we told them the absolute truth, etc., they would certainly be hurt or made to feel bad, or something similar. Or there are probably various other circumstances, if you think about it long enough. That doesn't make it right, but it also doesn't change it from happening either.