• 14Dec 07

  Yes, Virginia...

  Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus

  By Francis P. Church, first published in The New York Sun in 1897.

  We take pleasure in answering thus prominently the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of The Sun:

  Dear Editor-

  I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, "If you see it in The Sun, it's so." Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?

  Virginia O'Hanlon

  Virginia, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men's or children's, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge.

  Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The external light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

  Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that's no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world.

  You tear apart the baby's rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding.

  No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

  About the Exchange

  Francis P. Church's editorial, "Yes Virginia, There is a Santa Claus" was an immediate sensation, and went on to became one of the most famous editorials ever written. It first appeared in the The New York Sun in 1897, almost a hundred years ago, and was reprinted annually until 1949 when the paper went out of business.

  Thirty-six years after her letter was printed, Virginia O'Hanlon recalled the events that prompted her letter:

  "Quite naturally I believed in Santa Claus, for he had never disappointed me. But when less fortunate little boys and girls said there wasn't any Santa Claus, I was filled with doubts. I asked my father, and he was a little evasive on the subject.

  "It was a habit in our family that whenever any doubts came up as to how to pronounce a word or some question of historical fact was in doubt, we wrote to the Question and Answer column in The Sun. Father would always say, 'If you see it in the The Sun, it's so,' and that settled the matter.

  "'Well, I'm just going to write The Sun and find out the real truth,' I said to father.

  "He said, 'Go ahead, Virginia. I'm sure The Sun will give you the right answer, as it always does.'"

  And so Virginia sat down and wrote her parents' favorite newspaper.

  Her letter found its way into the hands of a veteran editor, Francis P. Church. Son of a Baptist minister, Church had covered the Civil War for The New York Times and had worked on the The New York Sun for 20 years, more recently as an anonymous editorial writer. Church, a sardonic man, had for his personal motto, "Endeavour to clear your mind of cant." When controversal subjects had to be tackled on the editorial page, especially those dealing with theology, the assignments were usually given to Church.

  Now, he had in his hands a little girl's letter on a most controversial matter, and he was burdened with the responsibility of answering it.

  "Is there a Santa Claus?" the childish scrawl in the letter asked. At once, Church knew that there was no avoiding the question. He must answer, and he must answer truthfully. And so he turned to his desk, and he began his reply which was to become one of the most memorable editorials in newspaper history.

  Church married shortly after the editorial appeared. He died in April, 1906, leaving no children.

  Virginia O'Hanlon went on to graduate from Hunter College with a Bachelor of Arts degree at age 21. The following year she received her Master's from Columbia, and in 1912 she began teaching in the New York City school system, later becoming a principal. After 47 years, she retired as an educator. Throughout her life she received a steady stream of mail about her Santa Claus letter, and to each reply she attached an attractive printed copy of the Church editorial. Virginia O'Hanlon Douglas died on May 13, 1971, at the age of 81, in a nursing home in Valatie, N.Y.

  

  ~Andrea~

  • Posted Dec 14, 2007 3:29 pm PT
  • Category: Writing
  • 2 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 13Oct 07

  Signs you've had too much coffee...

  Signs You've Had Too Much Coffee...

  You've worn the finish off your coffee table.

  All your kids are named Joe.

  Instant coffee takes too long.

  People get dizzy just watching you.

  Starbucks owns the mortgage on your house.

  The nurse needs a scientific calculator to take your pulse.

  When someone asks 'how are you' you say, 'good to the last drop'.

  You can outlast the Energizer bunny.

  You can take a picture of yourself from ten feet away without using the timer.

  You can't even remember your second cup.

  You don't even wait for the water to boil anymore.

  You don't get mad, you get steamed.

  You don't sweat, you percolate.

  You don't tan, you roast.

  You forget to unwrap candy bars before eating them.

  You go to AA meetings just for the free coffee.

  You go to sleep just so you can wake up and smell the coffee.

  You grind your coffee beans in your mouth.

  You have a picture of your coffee mug on your coffee mug.

  You have to watch videos in fast-forward.

  You haven't blinked since the last lunar eclipse.

  You help your dog chase its tail.

  You introduce your spouse as your coffee mate.

  You just completed another sweater and you don't know how to knit.

  You lick your coffeepot clean.

  You name your cats Cream and Sugar.

  You short out motion detectors.

  You sleep with your eyes open.

  You soak your dentures in coffee overnight.

  You spend every vacation visiting Maxwell House.

  You think being called a drip is a compliment.

  You think CPR stands for Coffee Provides Resuscitation.

  Your first-aid kit contains two pints of coffee wth an I.V. hookup.

  Your eyes stay open when you sneeze.

  Your lips are permanently stuck in the sipping position.

  Your only source of nutrition comes from Sweet & Low.

  You've built a miniature city out of little plastic stirrers.

  You've worn out the handle on your favorite mug.

  lol. i luv those.

  -andrea

  • Posted Oct 13, 2007 7:58 pm PT
  • Category: Humor
  • 8 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg
• 9Oct 07

  about me

  hey ya'll. not that anyone really reads this thing... lol.

  uh, here's a quiz that i got from nickel2006. hope they don't mind...

  lol.

  real name- Andrea

  nicknames- don't really have one...

  married?- uh, no.

  zodiac sign- Picses

  gender- gal

  age- 14

  school- public school

  health freak?- uh, no. i'm eating a doughnut right now. what does that tell you...? lol. jk.

  piercings?- none. not even my ears.

  tattoos?- none.

  left or right handed?- left handed for writing but i use my right hand for some things. like throwing a baseball..etc.

  first surgery- heart surgery last year in April. *gag!*

  first piercing- none

  first best friend- Jessi

  first award- 3rd grade spelling bee. second place. i shoulda won...

  first sport- don't really play sports

  first pets- cats

  first vacation- uh, i went to my grandparents who live like halfway across the country...if that counts...

  first concert- haven't been to one yet.

  first crush- kindergarten. we rolled crayons back and forth on the floor at nap time. kinda reminds me of Loliver...

  currently in- my house

  i'm about to- take a sip of ice coffee...

  listening to- my mom's 80's songs

  watching- kids playing outside

  waiting for- uh, email?

  want kids?- hmmm... yeah.

  marriage?- ...yeah.

  desired career?- don't know. writer maybe. or a designer. or a dental hygenist (if i could learn to spell it...)

  kissed a stranger?- uh, no.

  lost glasses?- yeah. when i used to wear them.

  ran away?- no.

  broke someone's heart?- gee, i hope not...

  been arested?- no.

  turned someone down?- yeah.

  cried when someone died?- yes.

  liked a friend?- ...maybe...i'm in denial...

  believe in myself?- sometimes.

  believe in miracles?- yeah.

  love at first sight?- yes.

  heaven?- yes.

  santa?- well... lol. jk. no.

  sex on first date?- NO!

  angels?- yes.

  one person you want to be with now?- don't know...

  multiple girlfriends?- no.

  believe in God?- Yes.

  money or family?- family

  favorite sport?- don't really care for sports... wish i did though. wait does Nascar count?

  favorite color?- green, black, purple...

  favorite sports team?- West Virginia mountineers if i had to choose.

  favorite sports athlete?- don't really have one...

  hottest sports athlete?- don't care...

  • Posted Oct 9, 2007 4:26 pm PT
  • Category: Other
  • 5 Comments
  • Tag
  • Print
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Digg

See Previous Blog Posts »