上周六收到学校的来信, 里面是小儿G一年级老师的小纸条:"我想你们有兴趣看看G写给Santa的信"和一封信. 于是, 我小心翼翼地躲在房间里读了G的Letter to Santa. 用铅笔写的有点歪斜的信非常简短, 读完后让我忍不住地笑, 忍不住地感动. 一年级的G对圣诞充满期盼, 圣诞老人对他如此真实和重要! 原文如下:

http://s11/middle/5076a17fgb48136a48dea&690
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Dear Santa,

亲爱的圣诞老人,

I hope you are well at the North Pole. How is rudolph? Are you feeling good? I would like a new pair of shoes and a lego Star Wars set and most of all a Ipod touch. I hope you don't crash on your trip . I've been a good boy.

我希望你在北极生活得愉快. 鲁道夫驯鹿好吗?你现在感觉好吗? 我希望得到一双新鞋, 一套星球大站乐高, 其中最好能有iPod touch. 我希望你在旅程中不要翻车. 我一直是个好孩子.

 http://s4/middle/5076a17fg78734b81a213&690

Sinerely,此致,G

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同日, 又收到大儿J二年级班主任的邮件. 除了祝福的话语外, 她同时告诉我们, 也许有一些二年级的孩子已经在问关于圣诞老人的种种问题. 作为一个7年级女孩的妈妈, 老师分享了一封她认为对我们这些二年级家长极有帮助的信. 这是一封美国妈妈写给女儿的回信:"妈妈, 你是圣诞老人吗?".

J和G一样依旧充满期待, 给圣诞老人的单子改了又改. 对我们而言, 也许不是今年, 也许明年或后年, 他一定会和他的表哥表姐们一样问同样的问题. 这封邮件让妈妈居然眼睛湿润, 决定分享给和妈妈面临同样难题的其他爸爸妈妈们. 就在前不久, 新闻报道纽约有一华裔小学老师告诉她的学生, 圣诞老人根本不存在. 引起了社会的广泛不满, 为什么一名小学老师如此无情地扑灭孩子心中的信仰. 而这位美国妈妈的信却如同温暖的阳光一样, 让孩子明白的同时继续心中的信仰!

http://s3/middle/5076a17fgb481281eb082&690

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Dear Lucy,亲爱的露西,

Thank you for your letter. You asked a very good question: “Are you Santa?”

谢谢你的信. 你问了一个非常好的问题:"圣诞老人是你吗?"

I know you’ve wanted the answer to this question for a long time, and I’ve had to give it careful thought to know just what to say.

我知道你想问这个问题已经很长时间了, 而我也一直在认真地考虑如何回答你.

The answer is no. I am not Santa. There is no one Santa.

答案是"不". 我不是圣诞老人. 圣诞老人不是一个人.

I am the person who fills your stockings with presents, though. I also choose and wrap the presents under the tree, the same way my mom did for me, and the same way her mom did for her. (And yes, Daddy helps, too.)

我却是那个将礼物装入你的圣诞袜中的人. 我也是选择并包好礼物, 并将它放在圣诞树下的人, 就如同我的妈妈为我一样, 就如同她的妈妈为她一样. (是的, 爸爸也有帮忙)

I imagine you will someday do this for your children, and I know you will love seeing them run down the stairs on Christmas morning. You will love seeing them sit under the tree, their small faces lit with Christmas lights.我可以想像有一天你也会同样地为你的孩子这样做. 并且我知道你一定会很喜欢看到他们在圣诞节清晨跑下楼梯看到礼物的那一刻. 你也一定会喜欢他们坐在圣诞树下, 看着他们被圣诞灯照亮的小脸.

 http://s5/middle/5076a17fg7873514edae4&690

This won’t make you Santa, though.Santa is bigger than any person, and his work has gone on longer than any of us have lived. What he does is simple, but it is powerful. He teaches children how to have belief in something they can’t see or touch. 然而, 这却不能让你成为圣诞老人. 圣诞老人比任何一个人都伟大, 而他所做的工作也比我们任何活着的人都长久. 他所做的事其实简单, 但是却很强大. 他教会孩子们如何对自己看不到或摸不着的东西拥有信仰.

It’s a big job, and it’s an important one. Throughout your life, you will need this capacity to believe: in yourself, in your friends, in your talents and in your family. You’ll also need to believe in things you can’t measure or even hold in your hand. Here, I am talking about love, that great power that will light your life from the inside out, even during its darkest, coldest moments.这是一件伟大和重要的工作. 在你的生命中, 你将需要这样的能力去相信:你自己, 你的朋友们, 你的才能和你的家庭. 你还需要相信那些你无法计量或着甚至握在手中的东西. 在这里我所说的是爱, 这个伟大的能量能使你的生命从里到外发光, 即使在最黑暗的时候, 即使在最寒冷的时刻.

 http://s13/middle/5076a17fgb481311d9d5c&690

Santa is a teacher, and I have been his student, and now you know the secret of how he gets down all those chimneys on Christmas Eve: he has help from all the people whose hearts he’s filled with joy.圣诞老人是一位老师, 我一直是他的学生. 现在你知道了他是如何在圣诞夜里从每一家的烟囱里下来的秘密了: 他得到了所有被他心中装满喜悦的人的帮助.

With full hearts, people like Daddy and me take our turns helping Santa do a job that would otherwise be impossible.带着如此的心, 像爸爸和我这样的人轮流帮助着圣诞老人完成那些否则无法完成的工作.

So, no. I am not Santa. Santa is love and magic and hope and happiness. I’m on his team, and now you are, too.因此, 不. 我不是圣诞老人. 圣诞老人是爱,奇迹,希望和喜悦. 我是他的团队里的一员, 现在, 你也是了.

I love you and I always will.

我爱你并会一直爱着你,

Mama妈妈

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