VIEW FROM MY PORCH QUESTIONS, QUESTIONS SANTA’S …northpoleobserver.com/PDFfiles/NPoleObserverV6Is2LoRez.pdf · A Gift For Santa Children Ask the Strangest Questions SANTA NEEDS

Just because you have a beard hellip means nothing

Just because you wear a designer beard means noth-ing

I make these statements to draw your attention to an undercurrent that ripples between Designer Beaded and Real Bearded Santas

I have been a Santa for nearly fifteen years in which time I have witnessed and I have heard of a rivalry of sorts between the two

I question why this rivalry should be

Isnrsquot the whole idea of being Santa to make the children happy

Why does a real bearded Santa feel he is so much better Why does a De-signer Bearded Santa feel

uncomfortable an even unwanted in some Santa groups

It is simpleSome Santa groups locally

and nationally have incor-porated within their name the words ldquoReal Beardedrdquo which obviously precludes Designer Bearded Santas

Much is made of being in a ldquoSanta Fraternityrdquo and how often we reference ldquoBrothers in Redrdquo or being in the ldquoRed Suitrdquo What does that really mean if we accept the look of one Santa and not the other Arenrsquot we all Santa

A friend of mine who is

a Designer Beaded Santa related the following story concerning how he was treated

At a regional meeting of Santas he approached two Real Bearded Santas to introduce himself When the two saw my friend who was dressed in a red jacket and clean shaven they began to snicker and take on an air of superiority They asked my friend in a mock-ing way ldquowhat do you do around here are you an elf or somethingrdquo Not a very nice way to reciprocate the introduction however a sure way to show your ignorance Why do grown men act so childish

My friend held his temper and did not engage these

Santa Al Horton is no longer with us but he left behind a treasure trove of knowledge through his writings and his book This story is a favorite of both Santa Lou and myself Pg 4

lsquoRemember itrsquos not about youitrsquos about the childrenrsquo

Lou Knezevich

SCHOOL BELLS RINGING

Volume 6 Issue 2 SummerFall 2016

QUESTIONS QUESTIONSVIEW FROM MY PORCH

Since retiring I have been working leather in an attempt to supplement my SSI and very modest retirement I have included a sampling of my work as encouragement for others looking for something to tie in with Santa learn something new and with hope extra income Pg 15

Merry Christmas from usevery day of the year

SANTArsquoS WORKSHOP

Santa Lou Knezevich explores some of the questions children might ask and gives us sugges-tions on how to handle them and some wise answers to help all Santas grow Pg 11

KRIS KRINGLErsquoS WISDOMWake Up Santa Breakfast

Northern Lights Santa Academy SetSanta Lou Knezevich along with Santa Rick Rosenthal invite new and seasoned Santas to the premier of the Northern Lights Santa Academy in Alphareta Ga on Sept 17 and 18 to learn and acquire new skills under very talented and knowledegable Santas Pg 3

Several years ago I was given a precious gift from a very special little boy with whom I visited on manyoccasions in a St Jude clinic This gift still guides me today Pg 17

Children Ask the Strangest QuestionsA Gift For Santa

SANTA NEEDS YOU

Santa Lou Knezevich reminds all Santas how valuable Mrs Claus is and how she enhances Childrenrsquos lives Pg 8

See BEARDS Pg 2

A Sampling of Leather Work

Thank You Mrs Claus

What Does It MatterBy LOU KNEZEVICH Ripples Undercurrents

Have No Place in the World of Santa Claus

thoughtless individuals in any retribution

He also told me these gentle-mansrsquo looks did not represent professional Santas One needed a bleaching and a trip to the dentist to help correct his bad teeth The other in appearance and manner-isms was right behind the first Doesnrsquot it make you wonder the impression these two are making when portraying Santa Claus

Both of these men have missed the essence of being Santa and professionally portraying the character

This type of situation is what I am writing about when are we going to stop pitting one group over another When are we truly going to mean ldquoMy Brother in Redrdquo

When will we have organiza-tions which donrsquot telegraph its members by the words ldquoReal Bearded Santasrdquo What will it take to bring us together What will it take to unite us as a single minded fraternity of men who have but one purpose which is to make children happy

My friend is very well known in the Santa community and nation-ally He has been a Santa since childhood Irsquom sure his time as a Santa far exceeds the time of these gentleman He doesnrsquot brag about his accomplishments but he has been in demand for parades commercials corporate events Television appearances and a full schedule of Santa visits thruought the year

We are on the verge of a huge Santa gathering which will be a focal point for many Santas and families Letrsquos act like true profes-sionals there and every day we

walk in Santas bootsThe following excerpt was writ-

ten in a Blog by Santa John John-son who said in a ClausNet blog entitled ldquoCelebrity or Servantrdquo dated October 20 2015

ldquoMy prayer is that we lay down our arms and unite in the cause for common good that we may truly become the servants that we need to be In doing so may we not only become the Santa that we want to be but may our com-munity be viewed with loving eyes rather than those of ridicule and sadness We must all remember that we are not here to be celeb-rities We are here to serve the children Our great heritage shows us this May we also remember the words so eloquently set forth by Santa Phillip Wenz in his master work ldquoWhat Mattersrdquo

What Matters hellipOne hundred years from now it will not matter

What kind of beard you had bulldesigner or real

What kind of suit you wore bullvelvet or woolHow much money you charged bullor if you charged at allNor the events you appearedbullOr what group you belongedbull

What matters is hellipThat you portrayed Santa with bullhonesty and integrityYou shared with your peers to bullhelp foster fellowshipYour conduct exhibited was bullworthy of Santa

Most importantly what matters is knowing that you are blessed to have the opportunity to make the world be a little brighter and better because as Santa you were impor-tant in the life of a child

The only conclusion that can be made is that Santa cannot and must not be a celebrity but only a servant

May we all strive with renewed vigor to become just that

Remember ldquoItrsquos not youhellipItrsquos about the childrenrdquo

Santa Lou Knezevich

Page 2

BEARDS from Pg 1

Contributed Photo

Santa Lou Knezevich

School bells are ringing for San-tas in the Quad State area of Ten-nessee South Carolina Alabama and Georgia

Come join the learning experi-ence designed to help build your Professional Santa Career

The inaugural sessions of the Northern Lights Santa Academy will commence Saturday Septem-ber 17 and Sunday September 18 Special room rates are available at the Hilton Gardens Inn Alpharet-ta Ga which is the host hotel and includes a scrumptious made to order breakfast The Hilton Gar-dens Inn is conveniently accessible from GA 400 and major interstates such as I-285 I-75 I-85 plus other thoroughfares

Santa Rick Rosenthal and Santa Lou Knezevich have put together an outstanding program for New

and Seasoned Santas alike Special guests have been invited to pro-vide sessions about Story Telling How to apply Santa Make-up plus individualized one-on-one sessions with a licensed cosmetologist about your hair and beard

We have also planned special sessions for New Santas to give you tips on performing and answer all your questions All Santas will have much to look forward to as we get ready for the coming season Wersquoll be discussing ldquoPricing your Ser-vices Making a Santa Appearance How to talk with Children Santa Ethicrsquos and Values Story Telling Improving and Gearing up for the Seasonrdquo

Additional classes will be tailored and made available based upon the individual experience and needs of each Santa andor Mrs Claus who

preregistersWe havenrsquot forgotten Mrs Claus

or the Elves Mrs Loretta Claus has planned a special ldquoMrs Claus Ladies and Elvesrdquo only session This promises to be a very interesting and informative session about the role of Mrs Claus and how she assists Santa Loretta has been por-traying Mrs Claus for over twelve years and she is going to share her experiences and tips on being an outstanding Mrs Claus Donrsquot miss it ladies

Therersquos a whole lot more for the attendees as it promises to be a pivotal point in being a professional Santa or Mrs Claus Plan on a fun filled time of comradery and educa-tion

For more information and regis-tration check our website wwwnorthernlightssantaacademycom

Page 3

School Bells are RingingImage Courtesy Northern Lights Santa Academy

Northern Lights Santa Academy

Page 4

By Santa Al Horton

I had found my sister after more than 20 years of not seeing her She and I shared rent for a while in Geor-gia

Please sit back prop up your feet and enjoy this short tidbit of knowledge I am sharing today

It is another Saturday morning when I awaken to my sister pounding on my door

ldquoWake up Santa Irsquom tak-ing you to breakfastrdquo

I shower primp the old whiskers and dress in my usual red plaid shirt red hat and large black belt

At breakfast several children are tugging at their motherrsquos sleeve and pointing at me They are trying to whisper but the entire restaurantdiner can

hear them ldquoLook mommy itrsquos Santardquo

I smile and wave Then jaunting over to their table I produce one of my fleeced bears from my pocket and ask if they have been good When they gleefully smile and an-nounce that they have I laugh with a Ho Ho Ho and hand them a bear I ask them to keep it a se-cret but I am out looking at who is naughty and nice

This event happens daily I enjoy the childrenrsquos smiles and the sparkles in their eyes as they ensure their parents that they will be nice

Now some may wonder why I dress this way and why I bother with the bears and comments I could just as easily hide like most celebrities and down play or even ignore the fans but to hurt a child like that would only confirm to the adults they need to tell them that

there is no such thing as Santa WHAT No such thing as Santa Who would bring the gifts who

would the children tell their secrets to what would happen to the trust in this world

Kris Kringlersquos Wisdom

Editorrsquos note I was introduced to Santa Al Horton a number of years ago as he and I along with Santa Lou Knezevich began publishing a newsletter for the world of Santa Claus Santa Al is no longer with us but he left a treasure trove of knowledge for Santas through his writings and his book lsquoSantarsquos Book of Knowledgersquo Occasionally Santa Lou and myself will republish a story by Santa Al This one was one of my favorites from the first time I read through it Hear the knowledge and savor the story Bill

Santa Al

I want everyone to experience the thrill of a child when they are excited to be around Santa I have had parents come up to me after a chance visit and bear gift telling me that just a few months earlier their child wouldnrsquot go near Santa and now look at them I enjoy being in the non-threatening posi-tion to bring happiness to others

If you need one bit of advice I recommend that you be yourself and the children will let you know if you are non-threatening and what you can and cannot do Donrsquot force anything not even your laugh Let it bellow out Be jolly all the time and donrsquot worry about the ridicule

When I am around adults they ask the most questions and they donrsquot hold any punches They donrsquot see how I can enjoy life so much when there are such troubles all around us The stress of just mak-ing a living is tough To that I just say ldquoLife is only as tough as you let it be If you donrsquot let it get you down and learn to enjoy the little things around you life will be simpler and happierrdquo There is usu-ally no response to that

This past year I visited a Jewish family who had a Christmas party for their Christian friends Both Jews and Gentiles alike received gifts from Santa Now remembering when to say Happy Hanukah

and when to say Merry Christmas worried me un-til I saw the children They were so content that Santa was handing out gifts I made a game of it The children were happy and I never thought twice about saying or doing the wrong thing again

July is rapidly approach-ing This is the time of year Santa could be out volunteering with activi-ties Look for some orga-nization that assist with hospital care of children or special camps for special needs children or the local businesses who might want to do some community work and donrsquot know how Have them donate some simple toys (eg stuffed animals games etc) and then take them to the local homeless shelter orphan-age or just to a hospital where there are a lot of children and hand them out

Now some of you have figured out that there is another reason I dress the way I do talk with the children and hand out the bears and volunteer for any Christmas in July activity That is the way to get yourself noticed and start booking for the next season

I highly recommend you get an agent if you want steady work or get out there and hustle yourself Or you can do want I do Not everyone can do it but it is rewarding

TIP OF THE MONTHDonrsquot wear jewelry carry

a cell phone or anything else not magical but if you do and are caught be very witty and up front

I had one such occur-rence during a private party I had mistakenly left my watch on Though it was well hidden it did slip out once and a child questioned me about it

Instead of hiding it I told them that it was a special communicator with my elves watching the sleigh From then on I remembered to take it off

THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH

If you really want to be on top of the Santa ladder learn other languages

The more you can speak with a child the better you are

I once visited a party for an orphanage in London One child questioned why I was a yank Thank goodness a few of my British friends had taught me some Welsh Gaelic and worked on my dif-ferent United Kingdom accents Not only did I surprise that young lad but he brought a new child who was French over to me I quickly depleted my French phrases and turned the child over to a helper who was actually French That worked out well For the rest of the two hours I could do nothing wrong

Page 5

Santa Al HortonNorth Pole Observer Archives Santa Al Horton

Page 6

See SURPRISE Pg 7

by Santa Al Horton

Section IHistory of Santa and how to be a credible SantaSection IIThe Business of SantaSection IIIStories parodies and other good stuffThis resource contains more information than any one school providesKnowledge insight and some terrific stories are all here

Santarsquos Book of Knowledge is still available on Amazon and other sites

Santarsquos Book of Knowledge

From the editor of the North Pole ObserverBeginning in early 2007 I have had the privledge and honor of reading and editing stories by Al Horton

which have appeared in the Red Suit Roundup Jingle Press Red Suit Gazette and now my own publication the North Pole Observer

Sadly Santa Al Horton is no longer with us but his knowledge lives onIf you are seeking knowledge built on education and experience blended with good story telling this book is

for you Al is not only a Santa instructor but has international experience with many years under his beltI have read a few posts saying that this book has a few gramatical errors Yes that is true but they are very

minor and donrsquot affect its value at all The knowledge and story-telling is there and laid out in a well-organized concise manner This is a reference book for novice and seasoned pro alike I highly recommend this book

Page 7

Page 8

See MRS CLAUS Pg 9

By LOU KNEZEVICH

The costumes are dry cleaned and hung in the closet to await the next Santa event My boots are also packed away along with my belt and gloves The past season is a blur of memories which is also packed away in my mind and I cherish each so much

This season Mrs Claus was my compan-ion and she brightened so many childrenrsquos faces Itrsquos taken a long while for Mrs Claus to gain recognition as part of the Christmas experi-ence I feel plus Irsquom hopeful she is becoming an important part of the Christmas magic each year I also hope Santas do not consider Mrs Claus is taking away from their performance Thatrsquos very far from the truth

I have found so many people are surprised to meet Mrs Claus and are quickly drawn to her While Santa is an imposing figure Mrs Claus conveys a moth-erly and ldquosafe appear-ancerdquo Children will quickly confide in Mrs Claus their Christmas

wishes while they may be reluctant or fright-ened to talk to Santa Many times Mrs Claus will gain the childrsquos confidence and lead them to and help them talk with Santa These are golden opportuni-ties which most surely would be missed with-out her

Another area Mrs Claus helps is with

Santas credibility For example a child may ask for a ldquoPillow Petrdquo Mrs Claus might say Santa werenrsquot the Elves working on them last Wednesday Santa replies ldquoThatrsquos right we had a special order for them because itrsquos such a popular toy Mrs Claus says Well Santa the toy shop manager told me we have a have enough

to fill all the ordersrdquo Now the child knows there is enough ldquoPillow Petrdquo at the ldquoNorth Pole workshoprdquo There are many scripting pos-sibilities between Mrs Claus and Santa which appear to be spontane-ous however they add realism and believability to the childrsquos visit

Thank You Mrs ClausSanta Needs You

Irsquom very disappointed to hear a Santa say his wife ldquowonrsquot be Mrs Clausrdquo I understand the reluctance and the reasons to refuse but I personally donrsquot think they are insurmountable objections

Some women feel they would need to dye their hair and refuse for this reason I did feel at one time Mrs Claus needed to have ldquowhite hairrdquo but I have long ago changed my mind Hair can be concealed by wearing a ldquoMop Hatrdquo or bonnet so no one needs to see the true color of Mrs Clausrsquo hair

I think another reac-tion is ldquowhat am I go-ing to dordquo I mentioned a few things in the pre-ceding paragraphs and

here are some others Help little children with their arts and crafts while they wait to speak with Santa Talk to chil-dren who are waiting to see Santa and gather-ing information to tell

Santa Tell stories such as ldquoThe Night before Christmasrdquo and oth-ers Console frightened children Take photo-graphs with children and adults (Please donrsquot say you hate your pho-

tos) Lead a sing along of Christmas Carols and many other things you are able to do

Try some of these things and add others to your appearance of Mrs Claus and Santa Be innovative and have fun performing Santa Claus is going to love you with him and your presence is going to help his per-formance

Ladies if you arenrsquot a Mrs Claus seriously consider becoming a part of the ldquoChristmas Magicrdquo Santa needs you

Page 9

contributed photo

Mrs Loretta Knezevich Claus

MRS CLAUS from Pg 8

Santa LoulsquoGeorgiarsquos Premier Santarsquosantaloubellsouthnetwwwsanta-loucom

ldquoItrsquos all about the Childrenrdquo

Page 10

Children are going to seek how to solve the riddles of how Santa does things They are going to ask

you the strang-est questions

I remember my Mom and Dad viewing Art Linklet-ter ldquoKids Say the Darnd-est Thingsrdquo The premise of this show was to have a

group of children usually no more than eight years old asked vari-ous questions by Linkletter There was no telling what a child might say or how they would interpret a question This made the show a hit because of the spontaneous reac-tion of the children Art Linkletter was a mainstay for many years and the show later continued with Bill Cosby as the host

Todayrsquos children are very in-telligent and seek to solve the riddles of how Santa does things Children are going to ask you the strangest questions they are quite unafraid as a rule to ask the most embarrassing and at times the most heart wrenching ques-tions You must prepare yourself for these questions with answers to establish yourself as the real Santa Clause

I donrsquot always have the best an-

swers however most of the follow-ing have worked well for me

Q Where are your reindeer (Asked on a 90+ degree day in Georgia)

A Now thatrsquos a very good ques-tion

The reindeer are at farm not too far from here The farm is in a city called Alpharetta did you ever hear of that city The farmer is feed-ing them some very special food so they can be real strong to pull my

sleigh especially because itrsquos loaded with presents for good girls and boysSo if you look up on the roof when you leave here you wonrsquot find them Guess what I had to come here today by car I love my sleigh and those cars make me a little nervous

Q How do you get down the chimney without getting burned

A I knew you were going to ask me that so Irsquom going to share a secret with you Do you think you

Page 11

See QUESTIONS Pg12

QuestionsKids Can Ask the Strangest ThingsBy lou knezevich

contributed photo

Santa Lou Knezevich

Page 12

QUESTIONS from Pg 11

can keep my secretOne of my elves is a very good

magician in fact his name is ldquoMagicordquo and he performs for us when we have parties He mixed up some very special magic dust Itrsquos very sparkly so I sprinkle it down the chimney and the dust puts out the fire It doesnrsquot last a long time so I have to be very quick to leave the presents Irsquove brought

Now do you know what I do when I want to get back to my sleigh When Irsquom ready to leave I put my finger aside my nose and up the chimney I go Then I sprinkle some magic dust down the chim-ney and everything is as it was before

Q How many Elves do you have

A I really donrsquot knowI do know we are constantly

building more factories so the Elves can keep up for the demand for toys

The North Pole is a very large city and our biggest job there is to fill all the orders for toys Of course that means we need Elves who are toy makers doll makers and most of all know all about computers

So you can imagine it takes hundreds even thousands of Elves to get those presents ready for my delivery

Our Elves come to us from all over the world and know how to make things which children of their home counties like They have to like the cold weather too plus all are a happy group of Santas help-ers

Q How can you eat all those

cookies and not be real fat

A I have been trying very hard to eat healthy

I love to eat cookies but after last Christmas Eve Mrs Claus has asked me to watch my diet

It seems she had to make my pants bigger because of all the cookies I had eaten I tried to tell her I didnrsquot eat many cookies but shersquos just like your Mom you canrsquot fool her

Do you eat vegetables Mrs Claus is making sure I eat my vegetables so she always has some of that ldquogreen stuff rdquo with lunch and supper At first it was hard for me to eat my vegetables but now I love peas green beans salad and even carrots You know eating vegetables is another way of getting on Santas ldquoNice Listrdquo

Q Whatrsquos your favorite CookieUsually when I ask if a child is

leaving me cookies Irsquoll be asked this question Santa never knows if the cookies have already been baked and you donrsquot want to hurt anyonersquos feelings by the wrong answer

A Hmmmm Let me ask you a questionrdquo

ldquoIf you were baking me cookies what would be your favorite cook-ierdquo A frequent reply is ldquoChocolate Chiprdquo ldquoWell now that is my very favorite cookie toordquo

ldquoIf you make your favorite cookie then you can share with Santa and wersquoll both be happyrdquo

Q Whorsquos your favorite rein-deer

A Now thatrsquos a tough question

Letrsquos see therersquos Dasher Dancer Prancer Vixen Comet Cupid Donder Blitzen and Rudolph I really like them all

(Practice remembering the Rein-deer names)

Each one of my Reindeer is spe-cial and each one works with the team to make sure I deliver all my gifts and to the right house I just donrsquot know what I would do if I didnrsquot have such a wonderful group of Reindeer

Q What do you feed your reindeer

A Not too many people know this

However at the North Pole we have farms all under glass so the cold weather doesnrsquot freeze the crops Thatrsquos where Santa gets all his fruits and vegetables from to

In one area of the farm my Elves grow a number grains which they mix into a special feed for my Reindeer Itrsquos a big secret whatrsquos in the feed but it looks a lot like the cereal you and I eat

For the most part parents are cooperative and want their child to have the best possible Santa experience In their desire to have the child fulfill their expectations they may unknowingly be rude say or do things which detract from a good Santa experience Some common situations are as follows

Parents often want to ldquofill inrdquo the question a reluctant child wonrsquot ask Parents can be very insistent the child ask you What are the names of your reindeer Sometimes you may feel the

See QUESTIONS Pg13

parents have a certain joy in their voices hoping you will trip up Most of the time parents are try-ing to help the child communi-cate with Santa and the questions they ask are much the same as asked by the young ones

Parents are often overheard say-

ing things to children which are clues for Santa We Santarsquos have to listen carefully because the parent is setting a scene for us They may say a childrsquos name or Elf they have brought along Just try to keep an ear open to the people around you

Remember a good reply is a

good story so work on your story telling techniques

Page 13

QUESTIONS from Pg 12

Legendary Santas Mentoring ProgramCreated by Santa Lou Knezevich

Santa Lou is a long time very profession-al knowledgeable Santa and Santa educator upholding the highest standards know as lsquoGeorgiarsquos Premier Santarsquo

Santa Lou conceived imagined and designed the program to benefit veteran as well as new Santas and anyone who aspires to wear the red suit

The mentoring program is designed to be carried forward into the future helping train guide and promote the true heart of Santa the Spirit of Christmas with knowl-edge and life-long mentoring

The Legendary Santas Mentoring Pro-gram is a tremendously valuable resource and a true guide for anyone who already portrays Santa and everyone who aspires to

For more information contact Santa Lou atLegendarySantasMentoringProggmailcomSleigh Phone 4049184756Download A Copy of the ManualhttpwwwNorthPoleObservercomMentoringManualdoc

Legendary

Santas

Mentoring Program Guidelines

Santa LoulsquoGeorgiarsquos Premier Santarsquosantaloubellsouthnetwwwsanta-loucom ldquoItrsquos all about the Childrenrdquo

Page 14

Page 15

One of my plans for retire-ment was to put into use the leather tools I had collected in recent years I also had a pretty good stock of leather along with stains dyes and finishing materals

The hand tooled premium leather billfolds (Bottom right) cost between $40 and $65 depending on details and tooling requests Plain with finish only is $35 I have also begun making Buf-

falo Hide wallets The Buffa-lo Crazy Horse (bottom left) has a choice of two different interriors This is beautiful soft and tough leather which should last a long time See more next page

Custom Billfolds

Premium hand crafted hand tooled leather creations

Custom Guitar Straps

See WORKSHOP Pg 16

Hand Crafted by Bill McKee

Belts

Page 16

Other items I make include the three bell door hanger right This door hanger measures 3-12 inches wide by 12 inches tall The hanger is suspend-ed by a solid brass D-ring Depending on the tooling request the price on the door hangers runs from $35 to $50Custom leather rifle slings are very popular An example is shown right Rifle slings begin at $40 for a plain finished strap with no tooling and plain back The example at right would be $85 which includes custom tool-

ing soft padded pigskin backing hand sewn to the main premium strap outlined by the stitching surrounding the tooling

I also make custom guitar straps (one example on previous page $55) key fobs below and more

Any questions or requests please contact BillEarthdancerorg

I only make a limited number of items each year and only as time al-lows

Custom orders require a 50 percent deposit Any currently available items are on a first-come first-served basis

Custom TooledRifle Slings

WORKSHOP from Pg 15

Key Fobs

Door Bell Hangers

ampHand Bells

Page 17

See GIFT Pg18

Hanging over the doorway to my North Pole room (under which I pass uncounted times every day) is a tissue paper craft rainbow When walking under this rainbow and acknowledging its presence any troubles I think I have fade into near-nothingness This gift of a rainbow given to Santa came from a very special young child I received it during my first full-scale visit to St Jude Tri-Cities Affiliate Clinic Even with my education background training and experience I was nervous as I arrived There were a number of children there that beautiful Spring day Each and every child from the youngest to the oldest was an inspiration to me and I soon felt right at home I moved from room to room taking whatever time required or seemed appropriate with each child and family I read or told stories answered questions and we played games I listened closely as some of them told me stories I had been informed there was one little boy who was lsquovery engag-ingrsquo Marinda McConnell Child Life Program Manager at The Childrenrsquos Hospital at Johnson City Medi-cal Center and St Jude Tri-Cities Affiliate Clinic in Johnson City Tn announced through his nearly-closed door that he had a visitor on the way to his room

ldquoSantardquo he exclaimed hearing the sleigh bells on my boots as I walked up the hall Entering his room I saw his eyes were dancing as his smile and excitement filled the room It may have seemed like Christmas morn-ing all over again for him

He had been working on a paper mache rainbow and was awaiting lunch with his mother at his side His laughter was like the sounds of happiness and joys from a Christ-mas morning all wrapped into one special little boy

A Gift for SantaBy BILL MCKEE

Page 18

GIFTfrom Pg 17

Lunch for him came though a plastic tube which fed directly into his stomach It has been this way almost his entire life Lunch was also some small bites of his favorites salted fries and a grilled burger Not being able to swallow the tidbits he took them in his mouth wrestled them around his tongue savoring every nuance and distinction of flavor fair and foul From each and every bite he extracted the essence of the flavors and juices and aromas discarding the remnants ready for another flavor filled treasure Each bite he took in savored and discarded once again All the while we talked laughed played and he continued working on the paper mache rainbow His hands twisted he labored to finish as he labored also to guide food to his mouth

And he laughed at the simple joys of living and the excitement of the day Before me was this child who savored life as he savored his lunch tasting every moment every flavor and even the sour notes Witnessing this young man full of energy and life overcoming many physical challenges (most adults could not deal with) rein-forced my understanding of the Sacredness of each and every child and of life itself His spirit shined through so brightly as to make his physical impairments nearly vanish into nothingness His boundless energy flowed through and beyond the walls of his room spilling over and being felt through the entire clinic I have no doubt The simple joy of living life seemed to come so naturally to

him I barely saw his physical impairments at all I just saw this bright shining little boy whose spirit could not be confined within his imperfect body His joy of life filled the room and all who came near him I had gone to the clinic to try and spread a little Christmas Joy per-haps brighten some childrsquos day As I left that day it was with renewed vigor and a brightened Spirit lifted up by this glowing little boy so full of energy and life housed in that small fragile body So thatrsquos why above our doorway is a rainbow And this little paper rainbow sheds a most incredible light that helps guide me on my path and my reindeer steer their sleigh

SantahttpwwwtheSantaClauscom

Page 19

Page 20Classified

North Pole Observer copyCopyright 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 copyreg

Masthead Artwork by Earthdancer Imaging copy

The North Pole Observercopy is published by Brothers Claus Press Issues are published in PDF format and available for viewing or down-load at httpwwwNorthPoleOb-servercom An archive of the issues is readily available online at httpwwwNorthPoleObservercom The publication is edited and produced independently by Bill McKee a long-time Santa All contents copy are the sole property of the authors pro-tected under US and International copyright laws and trademarks Written permission must be obtained from the author of any article before reproducing any of the written content or images in any formAll rights reserved

httpwwwtheSantaClauscom

CONTACT Bill McKee billearthdancerorg

Workshop amp Sleigh 276-429-2181

These sand cast solid Brass bells can be found online at Catrsquos Paw Web site The bells pictured above are recent additions to Perryrsquos inventory For our readers who are familiar with my story lsquoThe Bell on Christmas Eversquo this is my source of the small acorn bells which are very special to me

I have purchased numerous bells from Perry and I can recommend his service honesty and products very highly without hesitation

Contact Perry at Catrsquos Pawhttpwwwcatspawdbcomaccessorieshtmldonnajoayenet

Brass Bells PolarExpressStyle Bellsamp more

ldquoIn putting on this suit and entering the sleigh the wearer waives any and all rights to previous identity real or implied and fully accepts the duties and responsibilities of Santa Claus until such time that wearer becomes unable to do so either by accident or designrdquo

The ldquoSanta Clauserdquofrom the movie The Santa Clause

The Santa Clause