Sinterklaas

Although it may sound familiar because it sounds like 'Santa Claus', you probably don't know him. This is the guy that gives presents to Dutch (and German) kids on the 5th of December, which is his own birthday. He dresses up in a red dress with gold and yellow accents and he has a big hat that points to the sky. He is the man I dreamed of for the first seven years of my life, my hero, the one that made me look forward to December 5th every year. Though, when I turned eight I discovered the worst thing in my eight years of life: he was fake...

How could they make me believe this was real? A man on a white horse that rode on our roofs to throw presents in the chimney sounded pretty acceptable. How could they eat the carrots and sugar themselves when I thought the horse of Sinterklaas ate them? My parents were liars..

Now, thirteen years later, I opened mailbox 274 at St. Edward's University, and what did I find? A little present packed in red and yellow paper, with a little poem written by my friend. After all these years, we all know Sinterklaas doesn't exist, but the happy feeling I got in the first seven years of my life during this time of the year certainly returned.