Yes, There is a Santa Claus

Saint Nicholas of Myra might be the primary inspiration for Santa Claus. He was a 4th-century Greek Christian bishop of Myra in what is now Demre, Turkey. Nicholas was famous for his generous gifts to the poor, in particular presenting the three impoverished daughters of a pious Christian with dowries so that they would not have to become prostitutes. (I raised an eyebrow on learning that.)

Another possible inspiration for Santa Claus is Odin, a major god amongst the Germanic peoples prior to their Christianization. Odin was the god of warfare (My eyebrow was raised again!) and was portrayed as a bearded old man who rode on a horse named Sleipnir through the skies. Each year at the Yule festival (winter solstice time) children would put their boots with food in them outside the door for Odin's horse. In return, Odin would then reward those children for their kindness by replacing Sleipnir's food with gifts or candy.

When I was a little boy, my Dad's Mother would label all her Christmas presents with a "From: Santa Claus" If my brothers or I said, "Thank you Grandma!" when opening one of these gifts, she would exclaim, "Oh! You need to thank Santa!" She was such a wonderful person, my brothers and I humored her for years after we no longer believed in Santa the person by saying, "Thanks Santa!" and watched her eyes do a Santa-like twinkle.

But none of this is what I'm referring to when I say Santa Claus. For me, Santa Claus is that spirit that lives in each of us that inspires us to give a helping hand to those in need, give a thoughtful gift to a loved one, or simply share a time of laughter and good cheer with those around us.

My younger brother and two guys that he knows, get together weekly to hang out and practice playing their guitars together. They jokingly call themselves the "Fat Cats" or in the summer, when it gets warm in the garage and they play without their shirts on, they call themselves, "The Bare Bellies". Each morning after his weekly practice/jam session, my brother comes into work with a smile on his face, happy to have been involved with a bunch of guys that truly get along with each other in rare fashion.

And each winter, around Thanksgiving, the "Bare Bellies" practise their repertoire of Christmas music and hymns while someone gets busy organizing around a half-dozen gigs for them at local nursing homes.

And so it was, last night, I attended a holiday sing-a-long at a local nursing home. I do not play, nor do I stand up with the band and sing. I just smile like crazy, help the folks find seats, set up and put away chairs, move furniture, and help pass around handouts with the lyrics to the songs. I often end up helping some of the tired older folks find their place in the handout and turn the pages for some with hands more beat up than mine.


The 'gig' is very informal and usually last about an hour. Sometimes the band brings cookies and sometimes the nursing home staff provides the band with some. Somehow, there are always cookies to be found.

Each time I go see them play, I see Santa Claus in the room. The three guitar players and the two ladies that sing along with the guys, light up the faces of so many care- or time-worn faces.

I've seen 90+ year old ladies hoot and holler, clap their hands and giggle, and once a couple even got up, slowly made their way over to the microphone using their walkers and started singing. They sang all 6+ verses of "Oh Christmas Tree" in German. I don't think there was a dry eye in the room when they finished...not even on any of the nurses.


At the end of what seems to be an oh-so-brief time, seeing the sea of happy faces, the mouthed "thank you's!", talking to (the always) some that seem to have no one to talk to, and having enjoyed the warmth (both inside and out as the places are usually well-heated!) I go home and find myself looking forward to the next one.

For me - this is the holiday spirit - and I'm unabashedly proud of my 'little brother' for doing these gigs - for this is what Santa Claus is all about.

In closing, I want to thank you all for your kind comments and e-mails on my previous entry. It made today a lot easier -

P.s., I thank Alice Kay for sending me Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" so I can practise up for an upcoming Vlog. Somehow I think Cappy is gonna be singing on camera - but with me, you never know.

:)