So who is this Santa feller anyway? Holly and I have been discussing what we would tell our kids about Santa. Some friends explain to their youngest - Santa is a fictional character. Others go full throttle into the shtick and are like - "I hear hooves on the roof!" I remember being fooled as a kid up until age 7. Then I did some detective work of my own. My sister was actually a lot easier to convince to believe in Santa, probably because my dad broke his wrist on Christmas eve one year and made up a story about getting up on the roof to help Santa with his reindeer. Pretty believable given that he had a broken wrist the next day and had sleigh bells to prove it.

This goes into a lesson I have learned this year - honesty can be brutal. So the question is, is it OK to be dishonest when being honest hurts someone else? My boy scout motto self would always be brutal, but I have learned to have temperance. For instance, why tell a kid Santa is not real, especially if they already believe? What does it gain both of you? Sure, the truth, but not a good truth. A kid has a fire of imagination and with the knowledge that Santa is real has many dreams that could come true in his mind. A kid without this fire ceases to be kidlike and then becomes an adult with his head out of the clouds.

As an adult I realize I was lied to alot growing up. We all were. By our parents - "we can't afford that toy","Santa is real", "don't eat that or you'll ruin your dinner." By our doctors - "keep brushing your baby teeth", "this isn't going to hurt at all". By our teachers - "of course this test counts","getting past this grade will get you into a good college","you will need to know this when you grow up." As I sit back I realize how many lies we are told in our lives by others. The amount is inconceivable.

So just because others lie does that mean we should? This year in a fit of honesty at work I did the proverbial "throw someone under the bus" by telling the truth about how things really are. Quite frankly I was a jerk. But I learned something. Brutal honesty is brutal first and honest second. I vow to not be brutally honest again. I would rather be joyful - a fruit of the spirit - than honest causing pain. So to all you kiddies out there... Go to bed early, or Santa will leave coal in your stockings!

ho ho ho....