Santa and crying children
December 16, 2007The first time I passed SantaLand, a father was the physical buffer between his wary child and the red lap. I caught the silhouette - the suffering Santa, the beaming Dad, and the frightened child. As I hurried by again, well-dressed, experienced children were smiling into the camera. The last time, there were three sibs on the lap. Two older sisters flanked a toddler in the middle. His eyes were full of tears, and he was trembly, but the parents were begging him to be good and smile, so he tried very hard, but the tears just hung there, shining and threatening to spill over.
