It’s a question that’s making the rounds of second-grade parents: Does your child believe in Santa Claus? The answer for me is no, not really. Teresa woke up one morning the summer when she was 5, before she started kindergarten, and asked us if Santa was real. We asked what she thought, and she told us that it didn’t make sense that one man could visit every house in one night, or, if he was someone from the North Pole, that he would give more to some people and less to others. Especially when the ones who received more usually already had more stuff, and vice versa. That was when we introduced the idea of a more metaphorical Santa Claus, a spirit of giving that parents like to use as a fun game to introduce their children to the joys of being generous. Santa Claus reminds us that we give gifts at Christmas to remember the greatest Christmas present ever, the baby Jesus, who arrived in a manger in Bethlehem to save us all. It’s a good story, and it has the advantage of making the kids feel like they’ve discovered a secret rather than been lied to. But sometimes I miss having a little one who believes. This isn’t the first time since we’ve had children that there have been no believers in the house. Frank was long past watching for Santa by the time Teresa was born. But her arrival was a gift for us, another chance to live through the magic of the early years. At Christmas, that means making sure we don’t mention buying candy to fill stockings, pretending to wonder what the children will find under the tree and helping the youngest carefully pour milk in Santa’s mug to set out with the Christmas cookies. It was fun to pretend. It is easier to be able to go Christmas shopping and tell the kids not to look in the trunk; to tell Teresa that the sooner she goes to bed, the sooner we can put the gifts out; to not worry if the wrapping paper on the gifts from Santa matched the paper on the gifts from Mom and Dad. For their part, the kids play along. They don’t go searching for their presents (at least as far as I know) because they don’t want to ruin their own surprises. The older ones sometimes help fill the stockings, and Teresa still puts out milk and cookies. She makes sure to include our favorites. After all, hauling a Christmas’ worth of presents up from the basement and getting everything arranged — not to mention making baby Jesus appear in the Nativity scene — is hungry work, and Mom and Dad could use some sustenance. Merry Christmas to all of you, whether you have anyone watching the Santa Tracker or not.