My son was talking to his eight year old son, Harry.
Harry told his dad he had “a theory.”
“Jesus and Santa Claus are the same person, ” he said. His dad gently replied, “Jesus and Santa may be separate people.” Upon reflection, Harry responded, “No, I’m sticking with my theory.”
Harry’s reasoning was, “Jesus and Santa are both nice, they bring me gifts, I can’t see them, and both come at Christmas.”
Good deductive skills for an eight year old.
But, for sure Harry will gather more information as the years go on, and probably will be inclined to reach a new conclusion.
What might be some of the possibilities Harry could end up with?
He might conclude:
– Jesus and Santa are separate people like his dad suggested, or
– Santa is a secular figure and Jesus is a religious one, or
– Each is a mythical representation of a common traditional holiday, or
– Santa doesn’t really exist, but Jesus does, or
– The nice thing about theorizing is you can experiment with new theories.
Harry has a lot to think about. I’ll be rooting him on whatever conclusion he reaches. Do I have any hunches about what his final conclusion might be?
One observation I’ve made about Harry is that even at his young age he’s not afraid to think out loud with adults. He’s straight forward, direct, insatiably curious, and quick to ask for clarification if he doesn’t understand what you have said.
I love interacting with Harry. He laughs at jokes, even jokes about himself. If he keeps that up, he’ll have a very happy life.
In the end, of all Harry has going for him, his fearless nature is the one I’m most impressed with. Harry is not afraid to think, and share why he thinks the way he does.