iSanta by Zara J Day

'Tis the morning of Christmas, and the family is awake, looking at the stockings which were empty again. The youngest boy accepted this fact as it was, Santa may come next year, if he ever does, with an iPad or MacBook for his brother or him. The oldest boy remembered a Christmas that was much different, where toys were abundant every year.

Years ago, Santa Claus ran the show in the North Pole, leading the elves through preparing toys. On occasion, the elves would make things like bikes, but for the most part, it was small things that fit under a tree and in stockings. As time's gone on, though, electronics hit the wish lists: MP3 players, iPods, MacBooks, and iPads, and Santa had to make a decision. If he didn't deliver these devices on Christmas, many kids would be disappointed. But buying all of them would break Santa's budget. So, what he decided he'd need to keep secret. They could learn how to make devices right there up north, and no one would need to know that this was copyright infringement.

Every CEO down in Silicon Valley liked Christmas a lot, for the oodles of cash it raked in Black Fridays. But they noticed one year that the money gained didn't line up with the smiles on the kids. When asked where Sarah Beth got her iPad, she replied so sweetly, the God's honest truth. "Santa brought it wrapped up in a bow."

This infuriated the CEOs who didn't remember bulk orders of product to anywhere that far North. They assembled their lawyers and filed a lawsuit that would force the charitable Santa to sell off all his assets, including workshops, reindeer, and thousands of Elves. Santa Claus lost the suit, hand-knit red with white trim, and retired in the Bahamas, where he'd always dreamed of.

Since then, it's been Santa Crispin who runs the factory, all products now devices, all elves now employees. But if you believe Crispin just gives gifts away, you couldn't be more wrong; that's not how one makes money. Each year, parents send the wish list with a check placed within, with a raffle to see which children get presents. Not surprisingly, that means nineteen out of twenty don't get a thing, not even a gift card for Apple Music. To win is exciting, no doubt about that, but naturally, some kids now go throughout childhood with no visits. Older kids miss when they knew that upon waking, they'd find a toy train or a new pair of roller skates, and younger kids who don't know any other tradition learn to save up their money to buy the devices directly. One year, there will be no more letters to Santa, and families will return to celebrating each other. For now, get your chequebook, it's time to go shopping.