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Legends don't live on if they are merely life-sized! Humanity en mass and over time, as water over a rock, combines the power statistical might with uniquely human romantic passion, a powerful creative capacity, and the patience of Darwinian change, to permanently etch legends into the stone tablets of mankind's Hall of Fame. Today's newspapers and social media networks are filled with people in the limelight, all but the "chosen ones" are sifted out like pebbles. They shine for a while, and even if they truly make us marvel, smile or frown, the glitter wears off with time like the paint on a shiny new car and head-turning wows give way to apathy, indifference, a dull dusty coat camouflage, and finally they become the stuff our plants grow on. How and why there remains a chosen few, what is the magic elixir to make a mortal into a legend? If anyone knew the answer they be selling it to us on a daily basis in our spam mail. Our spam boxes, our infomercial attacks, our automated telephone sales calls are all trying to tell us that THIS is exactly what they are selling us for $39.99 a month in three easy payments, when in fact it's either ground fingernails and tap-water from another city in those bottles.
And there is a exponential explosion of resistance, jealousy, fear and anger that ordinary people will never know or encounter that is reserved for those chosen few as they begin to make their ascent while all of us mortals remained grounded biding our time. Most spectators are accepting, but the passionate wanna-bes pull out their pins and go down popping as many balloons as they can, based on the common theory that if you can't rise to the top, you can at least appear respectably tall if you go around chopping off heads:).
One such character has been through it all, and like most good heros, withstood the test of time, the pin pricks, gradually ascending, sometimes with the permission of religious support, sometimes being admonished and outlawed, sometimes transcending religion tenaciously and passively working his way into even the secular hearts and archives to wear his predestined crown as a chosen one, based on purely a campaign of merit. Merely to mention your favorite "chosen one" as perhaps being equal to or greater than another's favorite hero, has been the basis fervent attacks. John Lennon was famous for saying things that got people angry, and when he said, "The Beatles are bigger than Jesus..." he ruffled a LOT of feathers.
I wasted a lot of your time and this story is going somewhere but where? Let me introduce you to my chosen one... Smile now everyone, it's Santa Claus! And is has been and is still going through all the stages described above, and his fame grows with ever attempt to suspend his sleigh license. In fact, even many of those bordering on deity status "chosen ones" need a first and last name. If you called up a friend and asked for his or her thoughts on "Lennon", without the benefit of the printed word, and taking into account the age of the person on the listening side of the phone, a little bit of confusion may arise: "Lenin was a important historical figure in Russian history..." Or: "He was my favorite Beatle! Does anyone know who "Cherilyn Sarkisian LaPierre" is? One early evening in perhaps 1949, if you were around you may have heard "Cherilyn, come in now, it's time for dinner!" That what Cher's mom called her, simplifying it to "Cher" turned out to be a good decision. With the easily branded name, her unique look, talent and personality did the rest. And she enjoys that "chosen one+"feature of also being a one-name icon. Some claim to be similar, and certainly Jesus Christ has a double star rating since the mere mention of either "Christ" or Jesus" points to the same icon in the hearts and history of man, to the extent that, did you know, the first definition of the word "icon" is "a painting of Jesus Christ or another holy figure, typically in a traditional style on wood, venerated and used as an aid to devotion in the Byzantine and other Eastern Churches"?
As for my character, "Claus" doesn't quite cut it. "Sorry, Santa, it's just one star for you." "Chosen One*" not the "Chosen One**" title. Last name, one name icon status is a big feat, but still easier to achieve than first name one name icon status. A good example is "Einstein". But sometimes as the test of time will have it, one name icons are partially stolen from their bearers: Do a search for "Aristotle", and the philosopher holds on tightly, but more contemporary icon we all have more recently come to know with the last name "Onassis" will show up on the first page of most search engines. "Ali" punched his way and talked his way into everyone's long term memory. The name "Armstrong" was probably originally derived in much the same way that "Big Foot" was derived his, meritoriously, but now is shared by a few very famous eople, notably: "Lance", "Louis" and "Neil". "Beethoven" is Beethoven; as is "Bach" and "Motzart" and "Brando" and "Bogart" and "Napoleon". "Bono" is an interesting example, because there was a little competition, but the ballon continues to ascend and person whose real name is Paul Hewson, singer/activist, is a good contender for the crown and ownership of the name. ("Elvis" has got some competition, but Mr. Presley has a ghostly reputation for tenacity and showing up in places when he's not expected so I am confident he will do just fine!) Some have achieved their fame through horrific deeds: "Capone", "Hitler". And depending upon which school you got your textbooks from, infamous characters such as "Stalin", "Castro" and "Mao" (I don't think too many people knew him as "Zedong".) take their title as heros or villains or hero/villans.
Some of the "Chosen Ones" were not chosen so much as mothered by necessity: "Where there's a villain we need to find or CREATE an "anti-villain", and in this fabrication or birth out of need, some of these "Chosen Ones" took a short cut, never having shared the burdensome challenges of the material world of flesh and blood. Pinocchio comes to mind: Problem to resolve: a hero to fight dishonesty. And Scrooge (Like "Zerox" when the name transcends a proper noun status to become more: a verb, an adjective...) Scrooge was sent to us to fight greed and thanklessness. My friend Santa came about in much the same way. The foe: Selfishness. The proverbial question in the mind of many a curious child: Is Santa Real? I struggled with for a while, since lying offends me, especially to a loved one and a child. But I no longer struggle with the answer since I provide this a more eloquent and inspired by the moment version of the following crude statement: If we learn something very important from someone, he or she is more real than a flesh and blood person who never gave so much to the world. That makes the answer easy and honest. "Harry Potter" may be a contender?
People such as: "Chaplin", "Bojangles", "Churchill", "Mother Theresa" ("Mother" is added out of respect not necessity.) "Van Gogh", "Shakespeare", "Picasso", "Poe", "Pasteur" and I believe even "Pinocchio" and "Santa", who positively continue to teach and inspire us and our children, fall into a special category that feels uncomfortable if dishonored. It is best described with a couple of analogies: "The battle between fur traders and animal conservationist and zoologists." "Or the battle between the "Tree Huggers and the Lumber Industry." In the end, humanity teaches us to not only accept man's imperfection, but to marvel at its diversity and the growth it spurs. In that light, think of this: How does "MotherTheresa.com" sound to you? Kind of like squid ice cream?
Maintaining a reverence for this class of "Chosen Ones" that time has elevated to unique summit in our society, is a responsibility I have very unintentionally come to shoulder. I can identify with the character Tim Allen portrayed, (OK everybody, it's Tool Time!), when Santa fell off the roof and he walked over to help, he had no idea of just what was in store for him! And similarly, when my young son and I (He was home sick that day I believe and we were playing on the computer) purchased "Worldcup.org" and "Santa.net" in the 1996, I had no idea of what I was in store for. I felt guilty (I was raised a Roman Catholic.) keeping worldcup.org because I felt I was keeping it away from it rightful home. I let that domain name go and now FIFA has it and that makes sense. But a funny thing happened in months that followed my son and I setting up Santa.net: The letters to Santa started coming in. Letters were mostly predictable: "For Christmas I want..." or "Sometimes I wasn't good will I still get presents?" But, other times the letters moved me sometimes to the point of making me uncomfortable. Letters from parents not kids: "I am too old to believe in you but my husband died in the war and please make the pain go away fro our son this Christmas..." Or, don't give me any presents this year just bring peace to the world. Well the letters keep coming...
Just last night an indirect letter to Santa came in came in and it inspired my writing this story: "Dear whomever owns the santa.net domain (im sorry sir I did not catch your name), I would just like to tell you that you helped me alot, I'm 23 years old and have just moved into a house with my girlfriend who i'm engaged to be married and we've been talking about maybe in a few years starting a family of our own when inevitibly the subject of santa came up and we couldn't decide if it was right or wrong to tell a child that santa is real, after reading something which you posted on wikianswers.com I can safely say that you have reassured me that it would be the right thing, so thank you very much for your help. Sorry about this random e-mail (i bet you freaked out when you saw this in your inbox haha) So best of luck with the site I hope your getting lots of traffic near christmas time."
So when I spend my time playing/working on Santa.net and I see the worried look in my wife's eyes and I have no idea why I continue to spend so much time on it, at least I have the memories of the people who may have been helped by what Santa gives us. Like Pinocchio, Santa's message is real. And it's by no means a DOT-COM type of message. Santa is not a store or a business. It's more of a DOT-NET type of network. A positive spirit providing a non-denominational, spirit-of-giving-and-caring fun to everyone with a cool dude as the host. (Not me by any means -- I haven't even been promoted to "Elf" yet!) Santa. That's the man, icon, name, pure and simple complete with its plus rating for a first name basis. Ask any kid who "Santa" is, it's a no brainer. And having this name in my possession, I am glad to give his home on the Internet a place of honor so it doesn't feel like squid ice cream. I am proud to have a small role as "Keeper of the Flame". The Spirit that is given to us when our souls are born is the same spirit that Santa tries to keep alive. It is non-denominational and it is unselfish and compassionate. With these qualities the world will be a better place for our children and their children to. Without these qualities, the world may not be any more real than Pinocchio in a few years! So thanks Santa. And Stay Real!
And remember - Legends deserve more than dot-coms!
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