Naughty or Nice? - writercize #141

With the holiday season in full swing, I plan to post a few winter holiday-themed writercizes in the days to come. I'll try to mix it up with a little bit of Christmas, a little bit of Chanukah and a little bit of Kwanzaa. Keep the holiday spirit alive! Don't be shocked by some regular old writercizes as well.

This weekend, one of my daughters was looking at her food, then out the window, back and forth, when she looked up at me earnestly and said, "I wonder what it's like to fly. Not in the plane."

"I don't know. Probably pretty cool," I replied.

She thought about it some more and said, with gumption, "I think that is what I really want for Christmas. When I talk to him, I will ask Santa for magical fairy dust so that I can fly like Tinker Bell."

Hmmm.  When I posted her request on Facebook, a friend told me that magical flying fairy dust is on back order.  

I'm not quite sure what will happen when none appears in her stocking, or when she discovers that no amount of sparkling glitter will help her grow wings or float into the sky. She's four, so the reaction could really go anywhere from acceptance to defiance to heartbreak to confusion over a forgotten pipe dream.

Oh, and speaking of Santa - today I was thinking of coal in the bottom of a stocking, and thinking that in this economy, there are probably a lot of chilly families who would actually appreciate a little bit of extra coal this time of the year. Funny how perspective can dictate the true worth of a gift.

writercize:  Write a letter to Santa Claus.  The letter can be from you or from a fictional character.  Let Santa know if you (or the character) have been naughty or nice, and what you'd like for Christmas.

Click "read more" for writercizer sample response.

writercizer sample response:

Dear Mr. Claus,

As I grow older, I can't quite delineate the beginning and end of years as well, and I see that there's some naughty, nice and neutral in all of us, but so far as I can remember back to the start of this year, I've made an effort to be nice. I've slipped a couple of times and hurt a few feelings, mostly unintentional though admittedly not always, but I've also helped a lot of people and given my heart, love and laughter to family and friends, so let's just call it a "nice" year, shall we?

(Speaking of years, does the Santa nice-o-meter run from Christmas to Christmas, or from the New Year to Christmas? Because it might be nice to have a week off the radar!)

So, since I've been nice, and since I recognize with the economic downturn your workshop is probably feeling the crunch, I have a very simple request. 

I'd like the winning Mega Millions lottery ticket. 

Your elves don't have to build a thing and it'll only cost you a dollar. I promise to donate some to charity, and I'll put some into a nice PR campaign - "Believe in Santa" - "Santa wants YOU ... to be the good guy" - whatever message you want to get out there. We can work on it after the holidays.

Thanks for reading this letter, and best of luck for a safe flight and good cookies Christmas Eve. Say hi to Rudolph for me.

Love, 

True Blue Believer