I’m not sure what to ask for this year, because there is so much need out there. Santa, this year has been hard. We have seen so many horrible things occur: from police brutality to terrorist attacks; from homelessness to joblessness; death, destruction, hate and despair.
I know you are inundated with wish lists and folks asking for all sorts of things they consider absolutely essential to their well-being. But is there anything you can do about my requests? What can you give us to fix all of this pain?
All I want for Christmas is compassion and understanding. An understanding that can only be accomplished when there is mutual respect and trust. But how can we get there if we have people such as Donald Trump running for president, spewing hateful language and condemning an entire religion?
How can we get there if we have police killing us at alarming rates and not having to be responsible for their actions? There were more than 50 of them to date and counting. How can we get there when so many don’t have a roof over their heads and all the politicians try to do is roll out a tarp to cover the problem, not a roof? How can we get there if we are still marginalized, vilified and ostracized? From your perspective I’m sure you can see there is no respect, there is no trust and there is no understanding.
Santa, I know that you want to make everyone happy. I know that you want peace on Earth, but how can we get there? The planet is warming up so quickly it is frightening. Our ecosystems are changing and our seasons are getting more severe in some cases and non-existent in others. There are places on the planet that won’t be there in a few years, given the rise of the ocean level.
There are many of these things that we can fix ourselves, if only we could muster the collective resolve. I hope you don’t think we’re bothering you with things that are beyond your poor powers to address.
Santa, Noel is not well for us in too many critical ways. If we don’t get it together, we may not have the will or desire to write to you next year.
Let us hope that you’re not as stressed out as we are, not as up to your beard with problems that even an extra reindeer—endangered as they are—won’t improve your speed to attend to world needs.
You understand very well the gift of giving and that’s a lesson we must apply if we are to even make a minor step toward making our lives safe and secure.
Thanks, Santa, for all you can to do to answer any of our issues and always remember that all our good wishes go with you, as well as the hope that the melting polar caps won’t impede your journeys.