Work Text:
Buck, 1999
Dear Santa,
I have been doing my best to be a good kid this year. I’ve gone to school every day, I do all my homework, and I’m nice to everyone I meet. Some of my teachers and my friends say I talk too much and that I’m too loud, so I’m trying to be more quiet. That’s what good kids do, so I think I deserve good presents. I’m not sure I really believe in you anymore because someone at school said that you aren’t, but Maddie says that I have to believe or I won’t get any presents. So I decided that I’ll believe for at least one more year.
I really really like the scooter you gave me last year. My parents are a lot happier when I ride that scooter than they are when I rode a bike I found in the garage.
This Christmas, I would like to have my own bike. Maybe orange? I don’t really care what color it is, but I’d like it to look cool. Maddie says that I have to wear a helmet to be safe, so a cool helmet would be great too!
Please get something nice for Maddie too. She says that she’s too old for Santa, but I think she still deserves good presents. Maybe cool jeans or makeup? I don’t know what girls like, but you’re the expert.
I would also like my mom to be less sad. I think if she were less sad, she would be happier to have me around, and she might look at me more. It would be nice if she paid attention to me even when I’m not sick or hurt.
Thank you for reading my letter. I hope you think I’m good enough for these presents. My friend told me that his younger brother got coal last year, and I do not want that. If you think I deserve coal, please just don’t bring anything.
Thanks,
Evan
P.S. Maddie said I shouldn’t ask for anything big, but just in case you’re real, I’m asking for a PlayStation. If you’re really magic, you’ll be able to get one for me.
P.P.S. (or is it P.S.S.?) I would also like a puppy.
Eddie, 2000
Dear Santa,
Ms. Martin is making us write these letters for homework. I figured out that Santa wasn’t real when I was six, but she said I could pretend. Most of my friends still believe, and she doesn’t want me to ruin it for them.
I don’t think I deserve to be on the nice list this year. My dad tells me lots of things to do when he’s gone, but I can’t do all of them. He wants me to take care of my mom and my sisters, but I don’t know how. It seems like every time I try to do something good, it ends up making my parents mad. At church they always say that I should honor my mother and father and always obey them, and I don’t think I’m very good at that. If I can’t even listen to my parents, I don’t think I deserve presents.
My abuela does think I’m a good kid. She tells me she loves me all of the time, even when I don’t listen to her perfectly. She says that she knows that I’m doing my best, and that’s what counts. If she is right, maybe I do belong on the nice list.
If Santa was real and I was on the nice list, I would ask for something useful, like a nice pocketknife. I don’t know what I would use it for, but my dad says that every man should have one.
I don’t think Santa usually gives people pets, but I would love to have a cat. Something soft and fluffy that does want anything from me (except food and love). But I don’t think my parents will let me have a cat unless I show them that I’m responsible.
So there, if I believed in Santa, that’s what I would write in my letter.
Sincerely,
Edmundo Diaz
Christopher, 2019
Dear Santa,
I hope everything is going well up on the North Pole. Buck told me that lots of the ice up there is melting because the world is getting hotter, so I hope that hasn’t been too much of a problem.
It has not been a very good year, but I’ve been a good kid. I’m really glad you found my mom last year, because she died this year. It was really scary, and I was really sad, but my dad said that it was okay to feel sad, and now that we talk about her more, it is easier. I know my dad has been sad this year too, so please give him some extra presents to help him feel better like he has helped me.
Buck also makes things better! There was a tsunami this year, and even though I take surfing lessons, the water was stronger than me and pushed me away from Buck. But Buck is a firefighter (like my dad) and he saved me! Please give him extra presents like my dad.
Here is my list:
- stuffed animal to replace the one that Buck and I won and lost in the tsunami
- a pet hamster (just ask my dad first since he will have to help me with it)
- keep Dad safe at work
- Dad home for Christmas (he told me that he has to work that day, so if you could ask captain Bobby to let him stay home, that would make me very happy)
I’m sure my dad will get me some great presents, so don’t worry about getting too much for me. Please give your reindeer some extra carrots and tell them that they are from me.
Good luck this year!
Christopher
P.S. Are all of your reindeer girls? Buck took me to see some reindeer at the zoo last Christmas and he told me that only female reindeer have antlers in the winter. I have never seen your reindeer, but all of the movies show them with antlers. Could you leave a note with my presents to tell me if Buck is right?
Eddie, 2025
Dear Santa,
My therapist wants me to do this as a reflection exercise—something about thinking back on how I've grown during the past year and the things I want to work on over the next year. It feels a little ridiculous, but I promised myself I'd take it seriously, so here goes.
It's been a rough year. I moved back to Texas to be closer to my son, but I had to leave so much behind. My best friend, my job, my home. It was all worth it to be back in Christopher’s life again, but it was incredibly difficult to drive away from the family and the home I've built to return to a place that brought me so much pain.
Then I lost two of the most important people in my life. I'm sure you already knew that—your nice list is two names shorter this year.
Even though this year has been hard, I'm proud of the way I have grown through it. I feel like I've learned how to find joy, even when I believe I deserve pain. How to regain confidence. How to find love in unexpected places.
For once in my life, I believe that I deserve good things, so here's my wishlist for this year:
- Safety, health, and happiness for Christopher. That kid has gone through so much at such a young age, please just let him have a normal year
- For Buck, I want him to know that he is loved and that he is needed.
- And for me, the bravery to tell Buck that I'm in love with him. Loving him freely (and hopefully, being loved in return) would be one of the greatest gifts of my life.
So, Santa, I hope that you'll find that I'm worthy of the nice list. If not, I’ll do my best to fulfill my wishlist on my own.
Sincerely,
Eddie Diaz