To Secret Santa

To

Father Christmas

From

Tony Fernandes

Dear Father Christmas,

Today I sit back and ponder of days when I was very young. Children referred to you then as the all-giving Father Christmas. And if I were lucky I’d get just two gifts:

– 1 new trouser and 1 new shirt for the midnight Mass.

As a child I was fascinated with undiminished enthusiasm at the sheer joy that prevailed at Yuletide. I made a new miniature crib every year, fabricated a "star" out of a frame-work of bamboo, lined it with translucent craft-paper and lit a candle in it, and had it hung high up on a 20 ft. bamboo pole in the front of our house.

Very often during Yuletide I dreamed about Santa Claus. I am also intrigued by the number of names people called you: St. Nicholas, St. Nick, Father Christmas,Pai Noel, Papa Noel, Papa Natal, Santa Claus, Pere Noel, Papai Noel, Sinterklaas, Baba Noel, etc.

Then, Santa, I don’t know why all these good folks have now started calling you ‘Secret Santa”. Is it because you've been secretly hiding or stashing away some gifts? Are they meant for me? Anyway, as for me, you will always remain just the same jolly good merry old soul, no matter what - whether you are secret or whether the gifts are.

Santa, by the time when I was just about touching my teens, the number of gifts received had grown to three – a pair of new shoes got added to the list! Those days all apparel, stitched or ready-made, had to be what we Goans popularly call as 'vaddtea angar'. Literally, this means 'for the growing body', and economically, rightly so. Trousers, shirts, etc. were bought a size or two larger!

As a teenager, many months prior to the onset of Advent, I randomly dropped loose change in a piggy bank (made of red clay). This self-subsidy was put aside as a little pocket money, part of which I used to buy something for my mother at Christmas time. This continued for many years until I finished my studies and started to work, and forgot about the piggy bank. That's when my wish list got shorter and giving list grew bigger. The child-wonder was slowly beginning to lose its hold.

In turn, I wondered whether Santa was turning away and getting less fond of me as I grew older. I felt ignored. What did I do, where did I go wrong?

Of course, dear Santa, there's no doubt, that over the years you have worked tirelessly and your generosity has kept on growing tremendously, snow or no snow. Today's young men have got to be ashamed of themselves.

But Santa, I would like to bring to your notice that this year is the first year ever that I have been asked to participate into a Kris Kringle procedure adopted at the convention held at my place recently, also known as 'Secret Santa'. If I’ve got it right, names of the family members to whom the gifts are to be presented, were drawn out of a hat. As I was new to this modus operandi, forgive me Santa, for I may have bungled at this game from the very start. (I'm not good at games. I don't get them quick enough. Very slow learner. Am getting old too, you know). Also making my 'want list' public surely wasn’t intended. Please don’t take it seriously as you must be already aware that those items on my list are very expensive indeed. Jokes aside, but Santa I still love this new idea. Don't get me wrong.

But on the other hand, I have every thing that I've wished for that includes a wonderful wife and three charming children and a modest roof over my head (with a chimney of course - you know why). At this point in time I would like to mention that the dryer is not working too well and the cooking range looks battered. Would you be passing by Sears or Future Shop by any chance? But would that be beyond the admissible range, would it Santa? Specially now that that whole world is on the brink of a huge recession? But on second thought... what about the new super-slim wide screen....um, no, no, don't worry. I need a new lens for my camera! Also all my colleagues in my age group are now using iPads!

But Santa, I do understand. The word ‘recession’ is on everyone’s lips. Most of us are hearing it for the first time.

So, Santa, in view of the hard times being forecast, anything inexpensive (or even nothing at all) will do, as I believe the primary purpose of Secret Santa is to restrict all the unnecessary gift-giving. Moreover, this year older people are not supposed to receive gifts any way, more so because of the recession, even though it amazes me that you are still so rich after all the gift-giving for so many years. One good thing you still use your sleigh to deliver gifts - so there, you save such a lot of cash as you don't use any gas. Fortune List or Forbes List? No way, you are beyond that. Do keep the old-fashioned traditions going. I admire your good old ways. Do take care. Use more horses to pull the sleigh if you have to.

Have a Merry Christmas.

In Santa, I still believe!

Tony Fernandes (a.k.a. TonFerns)