Overheard in public transport
Yesterday in bus I observed a small girl (between age of 5 - 7) reciting Christmas verses to herself, while her father was standing next to the seat, attempting to read a thick paperback.
"Daddy!" said the girl eventually "Now let us imagine that you are the Santa and I will try reciting the poem to you!"
As you know, in Estonia the children have to earn their gifts.
This girl, obviously, was a perfectionist - she tried to construct her OWN poem (because making something is considered better than just repeating or giving something done by others) to recite to Santa. And it looked like she had had couple of lessons about good manners recently, so her poem started with: "We like YOU, dear Santa, more than the gifts you will be giving us!" (here she tried to go on to explain WHY that particular visitor would be welcome even without the gifts, but failed. After all, Santa is not some great-aunt Vanda, whom you see more than once in year. Why would someone even let a strange old man into their house, if not for the gifts?). Then she proceeded to compliments, starting with the traditional descriptions of a Santa "We like your red ... (she seemed to have been thinking of the NOSE, but suddenly remembered that a red nose is NOT, in general, considered attractive. So she changed direction in mid sentence) ... we like your white BEARD, can I touch it?"
She was quite proud of her invention: "Daddy, daddy, I made up that part about the beard being so nice that one would want to touch it by myself!"
"Daddy!" said the girl eventually "Now let us imagine that you are the Santa and I will try reciting the poem to you!"
As you know, in Estonia the children have to earn their gifts.
This girl, obviously, was a perfectionist - she tried to construct her OWN poem (because making something is considered better than just repeating or giving something done by others) to recite to Santa. And it looked like she had had couple of lessons about good manners recently, so her poem started with: "We like YOU, dear Santa, more than the gifts you will be giving us!" (here she tried to go on to explain WHY that particular visitor would be welcome even without the gifts, but failed. After all, Santa is not some great-aunt Vanda, whom you see more than once in year. Why would someone even let a strange old man into their house, if not for the gifts?). Then she proceeded to compliments, starting with the traditional descriptions of a Santa "We like your red ... (she seemed to have been thinking of the NOSE, but suddenly remembered that a red nose is NOT, in general, considered attractive. So she changed direction in mid sentence) ... we like your white BEARD, can I touch it?"
She was quite proud of her invention: "Daddy, daddy, I made up that part about the beard being so nice that one would want to touch it by myself!"