So I have a 4 year old nephew, and a few days before Christmas he counted up all the gifts under his Christmas tree, and then Christmas morning comes and he is crying because Santa Claus didn't leave him any gifts! He got extra gifts but his mother put them all under the tree(it wasn't labeled or anything so easy to say it was from Santa) without thinking he would notice. Now they came up a solution for their problem, and they had a couple of extra gifts which they pulled out and said Santa had left them at the front door. Problem solved, right?

Well originally I got a call from my mother, and she wanted me to say Santa left the gifts with me, then she could give them to me before I got there, and I could then give them to him. However, I told her I didn't want to do that. I suggested we just tell him the truth, that there isn't any Santa. Which brings me to why I am posting. Do you think it is okay to lie to children about Santa?

My personal opinion is that I don't think I should lie to children at all. My mother and sister however seem to think telling a child Santa isn't real is sacrilege. They were like yelling at me, when I even mentioned that Santa wasn't real while at their house, in fear that my nephew might accidentally overhear. I didn't actually tell him, because I don't want to be pushy with how my sister raises her child, but even mentioning it when he was out of the room made them uncomfortable, so I didn't push the issue at all. Still I feel like he should be told the truth.

When I asked my mother why we can't tell him the truth, she just said he was 4, as if that was an answer. To me, that sounds like. "He is young and gullible and is so an easy target to lie to." The only reason a kid gets upset when they learn Santa isn't real, is because they were told he was real in the first place. If no one said he was real, they wouldn't be upset when they find out he isn't.

Also, I feel like a child, even a 4 year old, can understand the concept of fictional character. They watch tv and movies and stuff like that. If I were to say, "You know that the teenage mutant ninja turtles and people like iron man are not real people, and are just characters right?" I think he would understand that and know they are not people. If I then said, "Santa is a character just like them." I think he could understand it as well. I don't think him knowing a Santa is a fictional character is going to subtract from the holiday at all. I am also fairly sure a child is going to understand if you say that people pretend he is real because it is fun. I mean children pretend to be things all the time but they know what they pretend isn't real and that doesn't reduce their enjoyment of it.

Any way, I am wondering what other people think, and what they tell children.