Revisiting some old letters to Santa

Jason Ferguson

Published: Tuesday, December 23rd, 2008

A couple of weeks ago, our “Question of the Week” asked some high school students what was the best Christmas present they ever received. Once we came up with the idea, I gave it some thought to see if I could recall the gift I loved the most as a child. I narrowed it down to two—my first Sega Genesis and my G.I. Joe Skystriker airplane. I’ve become a bit more of a grinch over the years, as being a kid who only receives presents has been replaced by being an adult who has to battle crowds and spend a lot of money buying presents for my family. I actually got my shopping done relatively early this year, which made things a little more tolerable. Some of the family is easy to buy for. For the kids, all you have to do is find a toy aisle somewhere. Problem solved. My parents are the most difficult to shop for, as they have pretty much everything and don’t give you a lot of suggestions on what to buy them. I always figure if they don’t like what I got them, they can always return it. Each year, we at the Chronicle run our “Letters to Santa” in the paper, in which the younger elementary students in the school district write a little note to Santa telling them what they want for Christmas. It’s always fun to type the letters—some of them are pure comedy you just can’t make up. We often will read the more funny letters aloud to everyone in the office as we are typing them. I don’t remember ever writing a letter to Santa as a child, but I’m sure I did. If I did, I can only hope that my letter rivaled some of the ones I have featured in this column in terms of comedy and creativity. I looked back through some archived Chronicles, and pulled out some letters from kids who are now high school students in Custer. I tried to find some of the more interesting ones. We get letters similar to these every year. It’s interesting to see how each child goes about trying to get Santa to bring them what they want on Christmas day. Oh, and all of the letters have been put in this column as they appeared in the paper—typos and all. Some kids tried the poetic route, like then-third grader Shawna Gibson: Christmas is a good year. Here is Santa Clause.  Rudolph has a shinny nose. It’s a cool year. Santa Clause is cool. Tinsel is fun to play with. Merry Christmas to all of you. And then on Christmas day you can spend it with your family. Santa Clause eats cookies and milk. Does it rhyme? No. And come to think of it, she never asked for anything. Maybe it was reverse psychology? Current sophomore Garet Tucker seemed resigned to the fact he wouldn’t be getting anything, but figured he would write anyway: Dear Santa, I’m only going to name one thing on my list becase I could fill this whole page with stuf. I would like a playstation, I probly wont get it, but it’s worth asking. Your friend, Garet Tucker Then third grader Taylor Foster tried the selfless technique to get what she wanted. Dear Santa, ...I have been keeping my eye on some things. I would like to have another puppy. Otherwise, I don’t need anything. but, if you don’t get me that, it’s okey. Just give me anything that you want me to have. Merry Christmas. Taylor Foster P.S. Let the children of Afganasta get anof to eat. As someone who helps type the Christmas letters, I can tell you that letters like this are few and far between. Most have a list as long as the page of things they want, as you will see if you read  this year’s letters! Then first grader Julie Nelson took it even one step further, asking for things for her sister, not herself. Dear Santa,  How are you doing? I’m fine. I don’t really care what I get, but I know my sister Cora would like a golden retriever. Love, Julie Nelson Brandon Miller, a third grader at the time, apparently developed a love for football long before starting as a tight end on this year’s football team. Dear Santa, Christmas is about giving and celebraating the ones that have died and famley gathering together. I fell sorry for the kids in Afghanistan. I would like a Play Stoton 2, Madden 2002, a 19 nch colerd TV, eny team little football. Brandon Miller Many of the kids in this particular class mentioned kids in Afghanistan. I don’t know if they had just finished up a lesson on the country or what the deal was. The most impressive thing about Brandon’s letter was his nailing the spelling of the country perfectly! I can only assume Luke Roddy and Brandon Smith sat next to each other in Mrs. Cofell’s second grade class. Both started their letters with small talk—Brandon talking about the cookies and milk being left out, and Luke wondering how cold the North Pole is. Both finished by asking for a Vikings jersey, although Brandon wanted a Randy Moss jersey, while Luke wanted Robert Smith. This is just a small sample of the many letters that can be found by looking back in our archives. No doubt many of the parents of the students who wrote the letters still have them sitting in a scrapbook somewhere. My wish list for Christmas has gotten considerably smaller and less expensive as I have grown older. I really don’t need a lot of fancy gadgetry, and I wouldn’t have anywhere to put it even if I had it. I usually ask for the same things every year. A calendar, some pants for work, some T-shirts and a pair of shoes. Works for me. Here’s hoping all of you get what you are asking for this year. If you are traveling to visit family this Christmas, or if someone is traveling to visit you, may they be safe travels. Remember the reason for the season, and may you and yours have a Merry Christmas and the happiest New Year.