As a newcomer family in Canada, some snow would make our first Christmas here magical
Reality has not matched the snowy pictures painted by Christmas movies
This First Person column is written by Shantanu Datta, a father who recently immigrated to Saskatoon with his family in November 2023. For more information about First Person stories, see the FAQ.
My 11-year-old surprised me on a warm Tuesday afternoon by handing me a letter.
"Baba, can you post this for me?"
She isn't from the generation that writes letters — at least not paper ones. She had returned from school, finished her food, quietly gone back to her room, then came back to me.
"It's a letter to Santa Claus," she said, as if to answer my quizzical look. "I have apologized for the delay, since we are new in Canada. But I am sure he will get it in time, since we are closer to the North Pole. And the postman can reach there faster since there is no snow yet."
Snow — or the lack of it — is our favourite topic of discussion these days. I looked at the ruled sheet, torn off her practice notebook. Among her long wish-list was a request to Santa: "Some snow please (lots, if possible)."
The line took me back to the days when we were preparing for the long journey from New Delhi to Canada and our new lives here. Among the most exciting things for my daughter was the prospect of a "real" snowy Christmas — unlike the fake "snowflakes" kids in most parts of India create for the season using cotton wool.
And why not? Her mental picture of Canada was based on watching online news from Saskatchewan, where there was snow during October, as we made our final preparations to leave Delhi.
Then there are Hollywood movies featuring people sledding, snug in down jackets and snow boots, or stuck at home and outwitting the bad guys on Christmas Day. There are cosy-looking scenes of people drinking hot chocolate on comfy armchairs by the fire, or shaking snow off their jackets as they enter warm cafes.
You get the gist. That's the "real" Christmas and New Year's spirit, right?
How can Santa dash through the snow with his reindeers if there's no snow? Will he land his sleigh on concrete? I imagine him taking the bus or hailing a cab.
"How do you expect him to carry so many gifts?" my daughter asks.
The Tuesday afternoon weather in Saskatoon brought me back to reality. It was the middle of December, and the weather forecast indicates we are heading for a brown Christmas and perhaps a similar New Year. The kid is already hoping against hope that her nightmare doesn't come true and that we don't need to get a pack of cotton wool during our next grocery haul.
As world leaders gathered at the COP28 in Dubai conference to talk about climate change, we're facing a future where we may have more brown Christmases in this part of the world. I wonder when are we going to take this issue more seriously, and deal with it even more seriously?
As I go out each morning to walk my daughter to school, I see helium-inflated balloons put up to welcome the festive season, deflated. They appear "like dead bodies," as my uber-imaginative daughter puts it.
She says it in jest, but there's a dash of melancholy in her voice. She's anticipating the deflated first Christmas she is likely to have in snowy — correction, sunny — Saskatoon.
Do you have a compelling personal story that can bring understanding or help others? We want to hear from you. Here's more info on how to pitch to us.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
