People often talk about the spirit of christmas… A day embedded in ideas of magic, wonder, giving, and gratitude – embodied by the mythical man Santa Claus.  I have really debated doing the whole Santa thing with The Munch.  I mean, I kind of like the idea of telling her that the myth of Santa and his flying reindeer came from a mushroom trip, but something tells me that it would be frowned upon if she told other kids about that.

My parents never did Santa with me, but I still got swept away in the mystique of the holiday.  I think part of what fueled this was seeing the Nutcracker every year.  There was something about the set design, music, story, and dancing that captivated my imagination.  It spoke to my little child mind with a narrative laden in sugar plum fairies and snow queens.  Although I never did get the creepy uncle part, or what that Nutcracker was doing trying to impress a little girl.

So this year my parents brought The Munch and me to the Nutcracker and she got to experience the production of it.  It made me really happy to share this childhood memory with her, although it also made me painfully aware of just how different our childhoods are.  A lot has changed in the 30 years since I was 3, and it is hard not to be nostalgic for a time gone by.  I want her to have a childhood that is as seemingly quaint as mine felt.   But I guess that is how every parent feels in a world that is constantly changing.  That sentiment of “when I grew up all was innocent compared to the corruption of today.”

But maybe the world has always been totally demented and we only notice it when we are old enough to understand.  So every childhood, no matter the exposure to technology, wars, environmental destruction, or human suffering, seems idyllic.  Because that is that nature of seeing the world through child eyes.

Here we are right before the curtain goes up!! Check out my Dad in the back holding Star baby!!