I Believe

At this time of year articles and films question the existence of Santa Claus.  By all accounts, if you are over 10 years old then you don't believe in him any more unless you are a simpleton. From this logic I must be under ten.  That is the only possible explanation.

 Today, has been a Christmas film marathon day.  I've watched several versions of the Christmas Carol, The Santa Clause, The Grinch and am now watching Love Actually.  There are so many things we, as humans, believe in that have questionable proof.  In the Santa Clause the little boy says, "Have you ever seen a million bucks? ....No, well it doesn't mean it doesn't exist does it?"  The problem is that once we human's have decided to believe in something it becomes very difficult to change your position in the face of 'proof'.  As a psychologist, I could tell you that this is due to Cognitive Dissonance, which is that uncomfortable feeling you get when you realise you were wrong about something.  For many people, this discomfort is too much to bear and so they just choose to hang onto their old beliefs.  There is a study of a cult group who thought the world was going to end on a certain date and then when it didn't they went silent for a little while, shocked and traumatised but the end of the day they were giving interviews sticking to their assertion and inventing reasons why the world hadn't ended.

But if you decide to believe that Santa doesn't exist, then what about The Tooth Fairy, The Easter Bunny, God, or my childhood imaginary friend, Baby Cumby?  I know Baby Cumby was real, just because no one else could see him...........

If Santa doesn't exist then what has NORAD been doing all day?
http://www.noradsanta.org/en/track.html

And if Father Christmas is made up then what do the flying reindeer do with themselves?

Frank Church, war correspondent for the New York Sun during the American Civil War responded to an 8 year old girl called Virginia, who had written to ask if Santa Claus was real.

I couldn't have put it better myself.  

I believe in Santa Claus and when he flies over the Caribbean he will remember my letter and collect my holidaying voice for me.