Dear Santa,

Please make corona go away.

Two of my three kids have asked for such on their Christmas lists this year, and I have had to pre-empt them that, well, you may not be able to deliver.

That Santa

-- the man, the myth, the legend --

all magical and stuff,

doesn't have the power to remove from this world and their lives,

a health pandemic that's plaguing it.

I know that if you could,

you would.

But you can't,

so you won't.

And because of that, I have a new ask,

and I hope you will oblige.

Dear Santa,

Can you please help spread more holiday joy this year than ever before?

Can you blast into the air an ungodly amount of

love,

kindness,

generosity,

peace,

light,

and overall goodness?

Can you remind us all that being rid of corona,

though it would be a nice and welcomed present,

isn't necessary for each of us to be a present to each other?

That the true meaning of Christmas is that we are never alone;

not when we've got each other.

Dear Santa,

If you can't take away corona, please take away the incorrect notion any of us have that Christmas 2020 is anything else than

special,

joy-filled,

and a time to reflect not just on all of the love we've got, but all of the love we are capable of giving,

pandemic or no pandemic.

If we keep Christmas in our hearts,

there is no need to search for it or demand it be found under a tree or in an answered wish.

We can't Christmas wish away corona, but we can make plenty of Christmas wishes come true despite it,

and that’s what I’m hellbent on doing.

Thanks for the pep talk, Santa.

See you soon.