When Truman sat on Santa’s lap a couple weeks ago, he knew this much: the guy could bring him a special present. He doesn’t understand why or when or how it will happen {you should have seen the confusion on his face when I mentioned flying reindeer!}, but he knew the purpose of sitting on that jolly guy’s lap was to ask for something wonderful.
DVD, which came out in 2004. He’d seen it pictured in a brochure that was tucked inside another old DVD. It features the covers of many other DVDs, but for some reason Tru only has eyes for this particular one. The answers we grownups get are rarely quite as obvious as a DVD under the tree. But when we do get a response – whether it’s exactly what we’d asked for or something quite different – it’s often accompanied by a tinge of regret over the time we’d spent fretting over it. We realize, in a moment of clarity, that none of that anxious energy did any good.
Right now, Tru’s too little to realize that his obsessing over the DVD he wants is pointless. Santa has already heard his request, decided to grant his wish, wrapped it up with pretty paper and a bow, and will deliver it in due time. The way Tru continues to drive himself {and us} crazy with anxiety over whether it will come has no bearing on whether it will come. I bet he’ll feel so relieved that he doesn’t have to worry about it anymore. Truth is, he never needed to.
