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Issue Date: December 23, 2007
An update to the classic Christmas question
We asked writers from three of the country's top newspapers to take a fresh look, telling us why "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" matters today.
The "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" newspaper essay has warmed holiday hearts for 110 years. We asked writers from three of the country's top newspapers to take a fresh look at these words, telling us why jolly old St. Nick still matters today.
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It all began with a little girl's question. Virginia O'Hanlon, 8, was old enough in 1897 to hear doubts about Santa's existence but was still full enough of hope to wish he was real. She needed answers, and for those she turned to a local newspaper, the "New York Sun." If the "Sun" says it's true, her father told her, then it is so. She wrote: "DEAR EDITOR: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. ... Please tell me the truth; is there a Santa Claus?"
She received her reply on Sept. 21 that year, in the form of an editorial, and the answer has enchanted the world for 110 years now: The immortal "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" essay not only convinced the world that Santa exists; it also demonstrated the profound power of a newspaper as a voice of authority and reason. More than a century later, the words of the writer, Francis Pharcellus Church, convey as much truth and wisdom about the holiday spirit as ever:
"Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist. ... Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence."
Church was not revealed as the writer until after his death in 1906, and the anonymous nature of the essay lends a poignant Everyman quality to the story. Since his words were published, Americans have cherished Christmas in times of depression and war, prosperity and peace. But Church's essay always remained relevant to the essential need to believe in something magical. To celebrate this anniversary, USA WEEKEND Magazine presents three new answers to Virginia's question -- three perspectives from three talented writers, all leading to the same answer, "Yes, Virginia ..."
For the original 1897 letter, visit newseum.org/yesvirginia.
By Kristy Eckert
The Columbus Dispatch
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
I suppose Googling your question did not yield a definitive answer, my dear, or you would not have written. Web searches cannot provide answers to life's most crucial queries.
Are any great treasures things you can touch?
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Today's world forces you to be sophisticated beyond your eight short years, Virginia, so let me be straight. People will lie to you, no matter how genuine your smiles. They will work to convince you that clouds don't make shapes, that no one hears your wishes when you blow out your birthday candles, that Santa Claus isn't real.
But challenge them to prove that such beauty does not exist, and I promise you they will fail.
Santa's existence is as certain as your knowledge of every last hip shake to the "High School Musical" dances. He's as true as your dreams of singing on "American Idol."
He is a reality that TV cannot bring to a show, for he has little time to waste on those who need his presence proved.
His spirit is reserved for those who see diamonds in the snow. It is retained for children who may have Webkinz to kiss, but who still leave carrots for the reindeer before snuggling into bed.
Think on it, bright Virginia: Are any of your greatest treasures things you can hold or touch?
What is it that shoots your arms into the air after you've scored a soccer goal? That crinkles your nose with laughter when your grandpa tickles you? That delights your tongue when you lick an ice cream cone?
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
You should not have to see to believe, young girl -- you must simply open your soul and feel.
Timeless words for little girls everywhere
The original Virginia turned to a newspaper. Today, newpapers still are places to turn for answers, as our three writers speak to a new generation of believers. For the original 1897 letter, visit www.newseum.org/yesvirginia/.
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Dennis McCarthy
Los Angeles Daily News
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
I know because an Army sergeant in Iraq told me that she -- yes, she, Virginia -- delivered a special gift from the North Pole to Baghdad last Christmas Eve. It was the gift of life, Virginia, one that saved a soldier. I'll let this sergeant tell you the story, Virginia, because she wants you and every child in the world to know that the spirit of Santa is alive and well.
"Some soldiers don't like to talk about family, and this was the case with this young soldier," the sergeant wrote to me from Iraq. "His performance was going down, and his attitude became more and more withdrawn. I began going over the mail list and noticed that in two months he got only one letter."
This sergeant learned that the soldier had joined the Army hoping to find a new family in the service, because the one he had at home wasn't working. They were not close, and he felt like an outcast, Virginia.
Unfortunately, some families are like that.
"Seeing everybody in his unit get mail from loved ones while he got nothing day after day only made things worse," the sergeant wrote to me. "I passed along a few of the 'any service member' letters that people back home randomly send, but it didn't help. He said it was like getting 'occupant' mail."
That's when this sergeant wrote to Carolyn Blashek in Encino, Calif., for help. Blashek started a non-profit organization called Operation Gratitude. In the last four years, she and her volunteer elves have sent more than 300,000 care packages to troops who don't get much mail from home. She learns their names, Virginia, from company commanders and first sergeants. Each and every holiday package she and her elves send has the service member's name on it, plus a couple of letters inside from kids like you, Virginia. They tell the troops that they're thinking about them every day and that they care about them.
"It was a few days after Christmas when I began to see the change," the sergeant wrote to me. "Something had happened. He was eating with the other men instead of taking his food and eating alone. His whole attitude and work improved. He finally opened up and told a stress counselor that he had planned to take his life on Christmas Day so someone would remember him."
The young soldier found a package addressed to him, with presents and letters inside.
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But something wonderful had happened on Christmas Eve, Virginia. When the sad young soldier went back to his bunk that night, he found a package that wasn't addressed to "any service member." It was addressed to him. He ripped it open and found presents for him inside and three letters written for him, all of them thanking him personally for his service and wishing him a safe return home. That wonderful package saved this young man's life.
No Santa Claus, Virginia? Santa "exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist" -- and as long as there are Santas here on Earth -- in people like Blashek, who never even meets those whose lives she touches forever.
By Michael Mayo
South Florida Sun-Sentinel
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.
I just didn't always understand him.
This season brings back a flashback. I was having family dinner at a small Italian restaurant in New York City, December 1970. I was 4. On the way out, the owner asked me a question: "So, what is Santa Claus going to bring you for Christmas?"
I'm getting to know Santa better every year.
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"Nothing," I said. "I'm a little Jewish boy."
My parents blanched. The owner broke out in laughter.
We had Hanukkah, which meant eight days of celebration and eight days of gifts, so I never felt deprived. As I grew up in Brooklyn, my family blended the Hanukkah traditions of potato pancakes and spinning tops with the New York holiday tradition of seeing the big tree at Rockefeller Center.
But on Christmas morning, with no tree in our house or big pile of presents to unwrap, I always felt different. Not envious. Just different.
These days, however, I'm getting to know Santa better every year.
Thirty-five years after my family dinner in New York, I found myself at a small Italian restaurant in South Florida on Christmas Eve 2005. My daughter, Natalia, had been born five weeks earlier. She was wearing a Santa Claus outfit. Swaddled in red velvet with white trim, the little cap covering her crinkled head, she slept through most of the meal. You see, Virginia, my wife, Michelle, is Catholic, which means we have a multi-denominational home. Which means our beloved Natalia, now 2, gets the best of both worlds. Every year, she is showered with gifts, toys from her parents and grandparents, the Christian ones and the Jewish ones, and we celebrate it all. Christmas. Hanukkah. Life.
Every December, the tree goes up and the menorah comes out. We trim the Christmas tree, and we light the Hanukkah candles. We make beef brisket one week, then glazed ham the next.
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He's not a jolly fat man we see sitting in malls or riding sleighs at the end of parades. He is you. He is every child. He is the boundless hope and infinite love that come in the tiniest package imaginable, one that begins as a tiny cell in an incomprehensible ocean and keeps growing. And smiling. Santa Claus, you see, can come in a Nativity creche or in the warm glow of a menorah.
When you grow older, you'll find that adults think they know all they need to know. But they keep making mistakes because they fail to realize that being human is about not having all the answers. But one day, if you're lucky, you'll know this: When you look into your children's eyes, you'll know that Santa Claus exists.
Online Exclusive: Virginia O'Hanlon's granddaughters share their memories
As children, we always knew that our grandmother helped make Christmas a very special holiday. Her name was Virginia O'Hanlon, and her first name would resonate for the ages, thanks to the wonderful "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus" editorial. The man who wrote those words, Francis Pharcellus Church, was never revealed as the author until after his death in 1906. So our grandmother was the one who gained the most attention from the exchange between her and the "Sun," and, throughout her life, she was proud to serve as an ambassador of Christmas.
Our grandmother maintained many holiday traditions at her home in New York City, and then North Chatham in upstate New York. On Christmas morning, we'd be up at the crack of dawn to open stockings in our parents' bedroom, and we couldn't go into the living room where Santa had placed our presents until after we returned from the 7 a.m. mass. A holiday breakfast of eggs, bacon and sweetbreads was always served on the finest china, with a lovely centerpiece presented on a mirror tray, depicting a village scene with an ice skating pond in its center. And, indeed, "Yes, Virginia," was an annual part of the tradition. The telephone always rang often at this time of year, with reporters eager to hear our grandmother recount her story, and she was delighted to speak to them. Every holiday, boxloads of mail would arrive for our grandmother from people all over the world who continued to be touched by this message of faith and fellowship. Every Christmas Eve, we gathered around her bed while she read to us her original letter and Mr. Church's response: "Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist ..."
Every holiday, boxloads of mail would arrive for our grandmother from people all over the world who continued to be touched by this message of faith and fellowship.
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That's when we got caught up in the magic of those words, and we still do. Because Church's words remind us that the most important parts of your life are often feelings and beliefs that you can't see or touch. Our grandmother wrote to the "Sun" for a reason. She didn't turn to a teacher, or a pastor. Her father said if the newspaper says Santa exists, then he exists, and that's that. Mr. Church's words convinced our grandmother, and the world, that Santa was real. Throughout her life, those feelings about Santa never wavered. "Of course I believe in him," she told us, in her last days. "I do. I do."
Virginia Rogers and Mary Blair are granddaughters of the original "Virginia," Virginia O'Hanlon, who passed away in 1971.
Cover photograph by Victoria Snowber, Getty Images |
