As a kid, I believed in both Santa Claus and Jesus Christ. I remember staring out of my bedroom window late at night on Christmas Eve hoping to catch a glimpse of Santa in his sleigh and his reindeer flying across sky in front of the moon. I also prayed to my perception of God.
Later I realized that Santa (the image portrayed on TV and in most books) was a fictional character, and that there was an actual person, Saint Nicholas, who Santa was fashioned after. Saint Nicholas was an ordinary man who left bags of clothing, etc. on peoples porches, to help them out.
When I was in my thirties, I made a birthday cake with Happy Birthday Jesus on it, as I pulled away from celebrating Santa. But, then lo and behold, I found out that baby Jesus wasn't born in the winter months. I found out that early Christian priests had wanted to convert more people; they wanted more people to attend their churches. The priests thought that the celebration that was already occurring in December was an easy way to promote their agenda. That served as a wake up call for me.
That was actually years ago; and then one night I had an epiphany. Since Christmas and Santa Claus had somehow got mixed together, I thought it might be refreshing to actually give homage to what the original holiday or celebration was about; gift giving. - The man, Saint Nicholas, had started the idea of giving gifts by delivering sacks of goods to various families. He didn't even plan for it to catch on, he was just doing a good deed. It's was as simple as that, simple gift giving - from the heart.
I know that the image of Santa, Saint Nicholas, has also changed over the years. For now, I went with the image that I am familiar with, the man in a red suit with a white beard. I still choose to celebrate gift giving. It's a great way to show kindness to one another. And having a designated day of the year helps more people to get on board and to celebrate giving to one another.
So if you would like to join me in wishing people a happy Saint Nicholas Day, here you go; I appreciate you joining me. By the way, Saint Nicholas Day is December 6 every year.
The Santa image on the card is made from my pointillism painting that I did. Hope you enjoy it.
And on that note, I wish you and yours, a Happy Saint Nicholas Day.
If you are broadening your thoughts on the myriad of other ways to celebrate the winter holidays, this design is for you. This card features a variety of holiday symbols to cover a variety of beliefs and ways to celebrate them. For truly, there are many reasons for the season.
Cheryl Paton
