"Yes. Santa's real." -- Isaiah Kahn, 8th grade
During the third century, Saint Nicholas was born to a wealthy family in what is now Turkey. Known for his kind and generous spirit during his lifetime, he was remembered fondly and made a saint in 1446. His story was eventually brought over to America where he evolved into the benevolent magical being he is now. Most young children are told that their presents are from him, but are unfortunately forced to give up on this idea as it becomes apparent that it doesn’t make much sense.
“I think she tried to cover it up,” said Aphrodite Avidon, a 7th grader in the Literary Arts sub-pathway at OSA. She found out when her mother forgot to take the Target receipt with her name on it out of Avidon’s presents. “She said ‘Well, Santa sometimes orders from Target. He can’t make everything.’”
“It was all because of a person named Rafi Ponet,” said Zanthe Jones-Gerachis, an 8th grader in Literary Arts. “I was at his house one day. I had already suspected [that Santa wasn’t real], and we were talking about the holidays or Hanukkah or something like that. He was kind of just giving me a look, and like, hinting. He said ‘Well, how can Santa be real if Hanukkah exists?’ and I was like, ‘Well… well… wait a second,’ and after that I went home and asked my mom if Santa was real and she said ‘yes.’ Then I asked my sister and she just walked away and said ‘Talk to dad.’ I think that’s where my confusion started.” She still blames Ponet for this and was eager to expose him in this article.
“I found out probably when I was about four,” said Rafi Ponet, the person in question. Being Jewish, he didn’t celebrate Christmas. “I guess to make myself feel better I thought, ‘Santa must not be real’ and I got my grandparents to confirm this.”
He decided to share this information. “I told my good friend Zanthe that she was wrong,” he said. “I also bragged about it in school, that I knew something that they didn’t. Lots of people argued, but some were just like ‘I knew it!’”
Avidon reported a similar experience. “I told my whole school,” she said. “And yeah, I definitely had friends who didn’t know at the time.”
After the conversation with Ponet, Jones-Gerachis went to a different friend’s house who told her that the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, and Santa all weren’t real. “I remember I got back in the car and told my mom,” she said. “I was so mad. I told my sister. We’re 5 and a half years apart, she’s older. I imagine it was pretty funny to her.”
Ponet also has a sister, this one younger. She had a much more direct approach to Santa. “My sister, since she was like two, would tell people that Santa wasn’t real if she saw a Santa costume or Santa hat,” said Ponet.
“I found out in second grade when my friend was spilling everything she had just learned,” said Cece Burger, a 6th grader in Literary Arts. “She told me that the Tooth Fairy wasn’t real and I was like ‘Oh my gosh, that’s crazy!’ and then she was like ‘Guess what’s even crazier, the Easter Bunny’s not real!’ and then she was like ‘Santa Claus isn’t real!’ and I was like ‘No, that’s not true.’ That one I didn’t believe, I didn’t want to believe that she was telling the truth.” Burger then went home and asked her mom about it, who questioned her but later admitted that her friend was right.
“After that, I think I accepted it,” Burger said. “I don’t tell younger kids, I kind of play along with it. I have 5-year-old neighbors who are always talking about it, especially now in the Winter. They’re like ‘Santa Claus is coming!’ and I’m like, ‘Oh, yep! Yep he is.’”
Regardless, Christmas is an exciting holiday to those who celebrate. It doesn’t matter whether the gift giver is your parents or an eccentric magic guy in a sleigh, even if the latter is probably a more fun concept. Happy holidays!
“I think she tried to cover it up,” said Aphrodite Avidon, a 7th grader in the Literary Arts sub-pathway at OSA. She found out when her mother forgot to take the Target receipt with her name on it out of Avidon’s presents. “She said ‘Well, Santa sometimes orders from Target. He can’t make everything.’”
“It was all because of a person named Rafi Ponet,” said Zanthe Jones-Gerachis, an 8th grader in Literary Arts. “I was at his house one day. I had already suspected [that Santa wasn’t real], and we were talking about the holidays or Hanukkah or something like that. He was kind of just giving me a look, and like, hinting. He said ‘Well, how can Santa be real if Hanukkah exists?’ and I was like, ‘Well… well… wait a second,’ and after that I went home and asked my mom if Santa was real and she said ‘yes.’ Then I asked my sister and she just walked away and said ‘Talk to dad.’ I think that’s where my confusion started.” She still blames Ponet for this and was eager to expose him in this article.
“I found out probably when I was about four,” said Rafi Ponet, the person in question. Being Jewish, he didn’t celebrate Christmas. “I guess to make myself feel better I thought, ‘Santa must not be real’ and I got my grandparents to confirm this.”
He decided to share this information. “I told my good friend Zanthe that she was wrong,” he said. “I also bragged about it in school, that I knew something that they didn’t. Lots of people argued, but some were just like ‘I knew it!’”
Avidon reported a similar experience. “I told my whole school,” she said. “And yeah, I definitely had friends who didn’t know at the time.”
After the conversation with Ponet, Jones-Gerachis went to a different friend’s house who told her that the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, and Santa all weren’t real. “I remember I got back in the car and told my mom,” she said. “I was so mad. I told my sister. We’re 5 and a half years apart, she’s older. I imagine it was pretty funny to her.”
Ponet also has a sister, this one younger. She had a much more direct approach to Santa. “My sister, since she was like two, would tell people that Santa wasn’t real if she saw a Santa costume or Santa hat,” said Ponet.
“I found out in second grade when my friend was spilling everything she had just learned,” said Cece Burger, a 6th grader in Literary Arts. “She told me that the Tooth Fairy wasn’t real and I was like ‘Oh my gosh, that’s crazy!’ and then she was like ‘Guess what’s even crazier, the Easter Bunny’s not real!’ and then she was like ‘Santa Claus isn’t real!’ and I was like ‘No, that’s not true.’ That one I didn’t believe, I didn’t want to believe that she was telling the truth.” Burger then went home and asked her mom about it, who questioned her but later admitted that her friend was right.
“After that, I think I accepted it,” Burger said. “I don’t tell younger kids, I kind of play along with it. I have 5-year-old neighbors who are always talking about it, especially now in the Winter. They’re like ‘Santa Claus is coming!’ and I’m like, ‘Oh, yep! Yep he is.’”
Regardless, Christmas is an exciting holiday to those who celebrate. It doesn’t matter whether the gift giver is your parents or an eccentric magic guy in a sleigh, even if the latter is probably a more fun concept. Happy holidays!
