When I first began being Santa (a little reluctantly at the time) I was roaming and greeting guests at one of the Hermann Wineries for Kristkindl, a German Christmas Market. A young lad of 5 or 6 approached, accompanied by an elderly woman who I took to be his grandmother. The boy was excited and absolutely effusive. He could barely contain himself on meeting ‘Santa’ face to face. He pulled a small toy car from his pocket explaining that it was part of a set that I had brought to him the previous Christmas. He said it was his favorite toy and that he and his dad played with the cars together. He went on and on until Grandma said it was time to go. As they were getting ready to leave, she whispered to me “He never talks.”
It turns out the boy was in the autistic spectrum and most of the time, very quiet. When I realized what a gift I had received by being able to make a difference in the life another, I knew that being Santa was something I would do for the rest of my life. One of the most remarkable things about this little guy was that he didn’t ask for anything. He just wanted to thank me for what I had brought to him before. I still cry whenever I share this story.