Letter to Father Christmas
15/10/2008
A child's letter to Father Christmas (Santa Claus) from the SOS Children's Village Freetown, Sierra Leone
Dear Santa Claus,
Christmas in my country comes in the dry season when the weather is very nice and it is not very hot. This year I together with my brothers and sisters am looking forward to receive you on Christmas Eve.
For us here at the Children's Village in Freetown, we all wait anxiously on Christmas Eve for you, as I know you will be bringing many Christmas presents for us. Christmas is a very big holiday in Sierra Leone as there are many Christians here. However, non Christians also take part in most of the activities such as going to outings and parties.
On the morning of 25 December, Christmas Day, I and my brothers and sisters wake up very early to see what gifts you have brought for us. We open our gifts and after that, we take our bath, have breakfast and go to church with our mother. After the service, we all come back to the house to rest. Early in the afternoon, we eat lunch as one big family and then go out to play. In the evening, we all meet in our school hall for a party. Everybody is tired at the end of this day because we enjoy ourselves very much.
The following day, called Boxing Day, is also part of our Christmas celebrations. We sometimes visit our friends, but we mostly enjoy going to the beach. My SOS mother prepares most of our favourite foods such as meat and fish pie, chicken and ice cream as well as juices and soft drinks. In the afternoon, our older brothers and sisters go to the National Stadium to witness the annual Boxing Day Athletics meeting and we the younger ones go out with our mother to an entertainment park. At the park, we usually have a lot of fun, as there are many rides and other activities we take part in.
Dear Santa Claus, please make this Christmas a very special one for all children of the world, particularly those of us in the children's villages worldwide. I wish that all children had peace and a good family such as mine to take care of them.
Your friend
Mariatu
Eight years old
SOS Children supports over four and a half thousand children in Sierra Leone through projects including three SOS Children's Villages, SOS Nursery schools, SOS Schools. SOS Social Centres run feeding programmes to support the local communities. Will you Sponsor a child this Christmas?
Relevant Countries: Sierra Leone.