Happy Golden Days

"Who said that every wish would be heard and answered when wished on the morning star? Somebody thought of it and someone believed it, look what its done so far."

If I lived here for no other reason, I would live here for Santa.

I am sure most of you are unaware, but Santa, it seems, has a soft spot in his heart for Cooperstown. I know. He told me. And in the event that his words aren't enough, his actions speak for his love of these little local kids and people. Santa, you see, is everywhere during the Christmas season. He not only accepts visitors (both human and animal) in his tiny cottage, he graces preschools and Head Start. He sits with the older folks in nursing homes. He sings with the kindergartners at Rotary lunches. He plays with toddlers at the gym. He visits patients at the hospital. Santa is everywhere anyone needs him to be. His heart is as big as the job demands.

A visit to Santa in Cooperstown is different then anything most of us have experienced in the past. It is warm and cozy. It feels perfect and complete. You stand, hands buried in mittens, heads tucked into hats, feet dancing in the snow outside his tiny cottage and wait. Always, it is cold, but even so, the wait never seems too long. It is too pretty. The village too quaint, draped in lights and greenery. Finally, the door opens. Out stumble a couple of happy kids, maybe some new parents with a tiny baby, and in you go. Inside, it is warm. Music plays. Santa is soft spoken and gentle. He remembers the things that Santa would, of course, remember. He has watched Alex grow. He greets him by name. He asks about kindergarten. He says hello to Cate. He has watched her grow too. He has followed her journey from China to this cozy little place across the planet. He welcomes her gently, anticipating her shyness, her reserve. Alex goes straight to his lap. After five years of visits, Santa is like an old friend. Santa asks what he would like for Christmas, but the visit doesn't seem to be about wanting. The visit with Santa seems to be about giving, about being content. There is an aura of giving and peacefulness all around him. It feels in that tiny cottage, the way Christmas should feel. The way it feels in story books and Christmas songs. Santa takes his time. He doesn't rush. He chats and asks questions. Sometimes he has even been known to read a story. The kids leave with a candy cane and that special quiet that falls when one has been in the presence of one so great. Back outside the cottage, it doesn't feel quite as cold.


Cate, of course, doesn't really understand what this Santa business is all about. She applauds when the tree is lit each morning. She goes wild for lights decorating a house. Santa...how do you explain Santa to a little girl who had nothing to call her own? But after a visit to his house, I think she started to know - not the asking for something, not the wanting of something, but the spirit of the season, the spirit of this man. We saw him again today when he visited the toddler party at the gym. He entered. Cate cheered. She grabbed my hand and ran to him, embracing the same Santa she was afraid to speak to less then a week ago. They say children are experts at detecting the true spirit of a person, and this is obviously true. When I lost sight of Cate in the crowd of parents and children at the gym, I had only to look for Santa. Cate was there, at his feet. I had to drag her away when it was time to go. Her summery of the experience, "Santa, mama. I yike him." I was twenty minutes late for a meeting. But I never would have changed that time for her.



As a bit of a roving reporter, I have had the honor of interviewing Santa on a couple of occasions.
I know he is a busy man. He has a whole world to visit, a whole planet get to on Christmas Eve. I am sure you could find one of his helpers elsewhere. I am sure there are many and that they are fine too. But if you find yourself doubting, if the world, your world, has shaken your beliefs and gotten you down this season, come to Cooperstown. You can find Santa in his tiny yellow cottage. You'll leave with a lighter feeling in you heart. He is a part of my Christmas magic. And I am thrilled by the magic he has so generously given to Alex and Cate.