by Yana, age 7, writes to Santa from Minsk, Belarus, and asks who Dzied Maroz really is.
Dear Santa,
My name is Yana, and I am 7 years old. I live in Minsk, Belarus, where her dyadya insists on ice fishing every single weekend no matter how cold it gets.
Dear Yana, that is exactly the sort of detail I like to hear about Minsk. It tells me you are paying attention to the world around you, which is the first step toward being a thoughtful person. Keep noticing things like that.
Santa, I have three questions. First, who is Dzied Maroz? My dad says that is what some people call you where they live, but I do not really understand who that is.
Dzied Maroz is what folks in Belarus affectionately call my old colleague, and in most every way, he and I are one and the same spirit of Christmas kindness, just wearing a name that fits the local language and the local customs. Every culture has shaped its own version of the story over the centuries, but underneath all the different names, it is always the same idea: someone who shows up in the cold and dark of winter to remind people that generosity matters. I am honored to answer to so many names.
Second, my grandpa was telling us about the Neman River, which winds all the way through the country toward the Baltic Sea. Do you fly over that on your Christmas Eve route?
Every single year, without fail. The neman river, which winds all the way through the country toward the baltic sea is one of the sights the reindeer look forward to most, and I always tell the new reindeer on the team to watch closely as we pass over, because there are not many views in the whole wide world quite like it. Rudolph usually slows down just a little right there, and I have learned not to rush him.
Third, is it true that belarus in Belarus? My family was talking about it at dinner and I want to know if it is real.
It certainly is true. Belarus celebrates its new year’s traditions with especially large festivities, since gifts often arrive on new year’s night. I think that is a wonderful thing for a family to talk about at the dinner table, because customs like that are what make Belarus feel like Belarus, and they are exactly the sort of thing that keeps a community close together, especially in the winter months.
Thank you for your letter and your good questions, Yana. Keep noticing the world around you, keep asking honest questions, and keep being kind to the people in Minsk. That is the whole spirit of Christmas right there. Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas, Santa.
Your friend,
Yana
Minsk, Belarus
P.S. Do you and Dzied Maroz ever compare notes on which one of you has the harder route?
Constantly. So far it remains a friendly and entirely unresolved argument.
