Dear Santa…

The little girl with bright chestnut eyes and corn silk hair looked at me and asked: Auntie, can I pass my wish to my second aunt?

Around the child, other boys and girls are busy writing their wishes for Christmas Eve. There will be a group of volunteers to help the child make those wishes come true. When reading the wishes, the most common ones are: “Santa Claus, please give me a Lego set”, “Santa Claus, please give me a doll that can open and close its eyes”. There is the funniest wish that I believe if Santa Claus were real, I would have to… give up: “Santa Claus, please give me a plane. But a really big plane, a plane that can carry people. In the past few seasons, you only gave me tiny toy planes. I will learn to fly a plane and take my parents out”…

I told the little girl, let's wait until Auntie Hai meets her, then she'll send her wish to Santa Claus, okay?! The little girl shook her head and said, "Auntie Hai said there's no Santa Claus, the rich kids' parents will pretend to be Santa Claus and give them presents. My parents were hit by a car and died, only Auntie Hai and Grandma are left... Today I met Santa Claus, that's enough to make me happy. That's why I want Auntie Hai to believe that Santa Claus exists."

What can I say to an 8 year old girl when she suddenly talks about her pain like that on a pink Christmas night? – My friend asked me. I shook my head. It was really hard to say anything.

Well, it’s hard to say anything. At that time, you could only hug the rare corn silk hair of a little girl in Saigon. You said: “So, what does your aunt wish for? How do you know?”. “Of course I know. Your aunt wishes that your grandmother would be cured. Your grandmother is bedridden after a stroke. It’s because your parents died early that your grandmother’s illness got worse. Your aunt always says that she wishes that your grandmother would be as healthy as before, even half as healthy as before…”. No one needed to hit my friend, but she cried heartily.

Every child thinks Santa Claus can grant all their wishes, not knowing that many times he just wishes for gifts – tangible, tangible gifts. No matter how difficult or expensive it is, he will surely try to do it. If Santa Claus is so difficult, how can he not cry?

* * * * *

At Christmas in 10th grade, my classmate in the Catholic neighborhood in Nghi Phu decided to drop out of school. Her family had many children, so when the children grew up to adolescence, the family would think about getting married to lighten the burden. After getting married, they could work together with their husbands to help their parents take care of their younger siblings, making it less difficult than going to school. Sometimes when one of the older siblings went to school, the children’s meals would be reduced by one bowl each.

It was of course a very sad Christmas for her. And for all of us, the 10th graders who were no longer young but not old enough to do anything to help her. That Christmas was cold. We all went to her house to eat sunflower seeds and drink green tea. The conversations became so boring that no one bothered to say anything when they thought that she would be off school at the end of the month. My teacher, who was over 60 that year, did not mind the cold wind and drizzle, and went to meet her parents to talk. On one hand, he persuaded the school to reduce her tuition. On the other hand, he always cared for her and her family in the most caring way possible. At that time, we often joked with each other, wondering why a strict person like him could be so gentle with her.

And after that Christmas, you continued to go to school. Your eyes were happy and not sad and quiet like before. You said that it was a gift from God sent to you through your teacher. He was Santa Claus who read your wish and gave you a priceless gift. That was also the first time I heard someone talk about Santa Claus in real life, not in Doraemon comics, Andersen fairy tales, Russian literature…

And a child like me, never asked Santa for anything because when I was naive, I didn't know about Santa's existence. When I knew, I was old enough to not believe in his existence and understood that whoever brings me happiness has Santa's heart, as my friend said.

* * * * *

My house is near Cau Ram Church. Every Christmas the church bell still rings. I don't understand why the same bell, in the same church, but I hardly hear it all year round, but I hear it at Christmas. My father returned home empty-handed after 10 years of working abroad to make a living. He is often excited about many beautiful foreign cultures, of which Christmas is one of the highlights. On Christmas Eves, I still invite my father to go to Cau Ram Church. Once, when I saw Santa Claus, my father said, I regret that when I was little, I never once gave my daughter a gift as Santa Claus, at least a doll. In many countries around the world, every child receives a gift from Santa Claus on Christmas Eve. The two of us reminisced about my dream of having a doll that could close its eyes and talk and laugh, which I had longed for year after year. My father was busy working abroad, heard it and then forgot. When my little daughter grew up, she still remembered her dream about the doll from the past...

I think Santa Claus is not simply a product of children’s imagination and playful adults who bring joy to them on Christmas Eve. Santa Claus with his kind and cheerful heart riding a reindeer (now riding a motorbike) overcomes religious and belief issues… but is the blessing and happiness that every child deserves to receive on Christmas Eve. Every adult is also happier when seeing their little angels believe and enjoy that joy.