The boy looked distraught.
鈥淲hy so gloomy? It鈥檚 nearly Christmas,鈥� his father tried to sound concerned.
鈥淛oey said there鈥檚 no such as Santa Claus, and I said, 鈥楽ure is,鈥� and he said, 鈥業s not,鈥� and then I got in trouble for punching him.鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 not very nice, Son,鈥� said Dad chidingly.
鈥淚 know,鈥� said the boy. 鈥淗e shouldn鈥檛 have said that.鈥�
鈥淚 mean it鈥檚 not nice to punch someone at Christmas time.鈥�
鈥淥h, yeah,鈥� the boy realized he should be contrite. 鈥淚 guess I should have waited till after Christmas, right?鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 not really鈥︹�� his father started to say, but then he changed his mind.
Instead, he told his son the story about how a newspaper editor once famously responded to a question from a girl named Virginia.
鈥淰irginia鈥檚 friends told her there was no Santa Claus,鈥� said the boy鈥檚 father, 鈥渟o her mother suggested that she write a letter to the editor 鈥� a very wise man, she said 鈥� to ask him, because he would certainly know. And he wrote an editorial especially for Virginia.鈥�
鈥淎nd what did the wise, old editor write?鈥� the boy asked expectantly.
鈥淗e wrote that Santa exists 鈥榡ust as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist,鈥欌�� the man reassured his son. 鈥淗e wrote that there will always be a Santa Claus, as long as there are children he can make happy. He wrote that Santa will be around for at least a hundred thousand years.鈥�
鈥淣o kidding?鈥� the boy said in words the colour of wonder.
鈥淣o kidding,鈥� said his dad. 鈥淎nd then, to be perfectly clear and to leave no doubt at all, he wrote right on the editorial page of the newspaper, 鈥榊es, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.鈥欌��
鈥淗e wrote that in the newspaper?鈥� the boy was wide-eyed in amazement.
鈥淵es, he did,鈥� said the dad.
鈥淭hen鈥︹�� the boy hesitated before continuing: 鈥淔ake news, right?鈥�
鈥淭hat鈥檚 right,鈥� said the dad. 鈥淏ut luckily, there鈥檚 more.鈥�
鈥淢ore,鈥� the crestfallen boy stretched the word out like Mr. Bumble did in Oliver Twist.
鈥淚t turns out,鈥� said his father, 鈥渢hat scientists have proven beyond any reasonable doubt at all that Santa Claus can鈥檛 possibly exist.鈥�
鈥淥h, boy!鈥� the young man beamed. 鈥淭hen he IS real! There really IS a Santa Claus!鈥�
