Obenieta: ‘Tis the season to be tricky

Saturday, December 3, 2011

IF ONLY Santa Claus had an e-mail. Because my eldest son’s wish rang a bell, his six-year-old brother chimed in with another head-scratcher: “Dada, why can’t we just call Santa and tell him what we want?”

Now you know that my two boys, despite their fondness for reading, find writing as fun as whining. Call it karma for parents who play tricks with their seasonal schemes of messing up innocent minds over this matter of honesty.

Have something to report? Tell us in text, photos or videos.

Best policy? Tell it to the police, if you may. It’s all systems go for grownups who get a jolly kick out of making the kids think the Man from the North Pole can be as sneaky as any burglar.

So far, the surprise-packed conspiracy of cheer looms no less spectacular than skywriting as the US Postal Service marks the 99th year of stealing young hearts through its Operation Santa. Hooking up with business companies and civic groups in various communities across America, the program has been clogging up the post offices of 75 cities since Thanksgiving Day last month.

"I think this is going to be the neediest year ever because the economy has not improved. We've already seen a lot of really sad letters," said the chief of New York’s main post office Pete Fontana. He added that a record number of Dear Santa requests have been received from families still reeling from the blow of the recession.

Expected to increase from 1.8 million letters in 2010, many have been written by parents who cannot afford to buy gifts for their children. Apart from toys, they ask for shoes or winter coats.

Cold as the cliché about home where charity supposedly begins, high expectation for the holidays has been as upbeat as the weather forecast here this side of the tropics: “Cebu will be experiencing sunny weather in the first two weeks of December…”

With such warmth, too, did the police in the city and the entire province assure the public a few months ago that “they will be extra alert as Christmas approaches to deter criminals.” However, law enforcement now seems to be knocking on their heads over the case of two men who must be grinning at the mirror after getting a haircut and robbing a beauty parlor in Mandaue City.

“The two suspects allegedly took a laptop worth P35,000, a cellular phone worth P2,000 and a silver necklace worth P1,250,” according to the report, which also told of variations on a theme of victimhood: A mother and her two children were robbed while waiting for a taxi in Minglanilla. A salesman in Barili ended up P30,000 poorer after a hold-up. Parked outside a pension house in barangay Camputhaw, a woman’s Starex van sped off with a carnapper behind the wheel.

Not far behind Santa’s reindeers, those who have nothing better to do have more than enough reason why this season of the year often gets spiky with reports straight from the police blotter. If you’re jobless, what’s your plan out loud other than polluting the neighborhood with your same old off-key carols?

Though not merrily, even thieves need to be heard, too. They also adon’t have the heart to tell their children, whiny about their wishes, that Santa Claus is not true.

(geemyko@gmail.com)