by Sadie, age 9 from Fairbanks, Alaska, asks Santa about Christmas Under the Northern Lights, the aurora borealis, and the Alaska Purchase.
Dear Santa, my name is Sadie, and I am nine years old. I live in Fairbanks, Alaska, where my mom says the sky puts on a green and purple light show almost every clear winter night.
Dear Sadie, that light show has guided my sleigh home more than once over the years, Fairbanks has some of the best aurora views on my entire route.
Santa, I have three questions.
Have you seen Christmas Under the Northern Lights? My dad says it was actually filmed somewhere kind of like here.
I have seen a good number of Christmas films set beneath the northern lights, Sadie, and your dad is right, those glowing skies make for a beautiful backdrop wherever they are filmed. Fairbanks itself could star in its own movie most winter nights.
My teacher says Fairbanks is one of the best places in the whole world to see the northern lights. Is that true?
It is true, Sadie, Fairbanks sits right beneath the auroral oval, a band around the Earth where the northern lights appear most often. I always try to time a slow pass through on a clear night, purely for the view.
My mom says Alaska used to belong to Russia before the United States bought it a long time ago. Is that true?
It is true, Sadie, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia back in 1867, a decision some people doubted at the time but that turned out rather well in the end. It is a good reminder that big decisions do not always look wise right away.
Merry Christmas, Santa.
Your friend,
Sadie Thompson
Fairbanks, Alaska
P.S. Do you ever pause your route just to watch the lights?
Every single year, Sadie, some views are simply too good to rush past.
