KAILUA-KONA — It’s that time of year again, when Santa Claus himself prepares to circle the globe delivering presents to the world’s boys and girls. West Hawaii Today tried to catch Santa before his annual trip, but we understand he’s had a busy schedule lately.
As a result, we spoke with the best experts in the field — Bonnie Musick’s first-grade class at Kealakehe Elementary School — to get the scoop this Christmas.
There were a few things everyone seemed pretty willing to agree on.
“He gives presents out,” said Lehuanani Ching-Warren.
He also wears mittens on his hands and a hat on his head, added Delphi Pua-Wakea, “so he doesn’t get cold in the North Pole.”
“Every day, it is cold,” Delphi added.
There was some disagreement though on exactly how old Santa is — but he’s somewhere between 25 and 500 years old.
And of course he’s got a big beard, “because he’s so old,” said the class, raising the eyebrows of a bearded 26-year-old West Hawaii Today reporter.
But he’s not too old to bring presents and spread good cheer, something Famous Mareko said Santa loves to do.
“Santa loves to bring joy to Christmas and to all the kids,” she said. “Santa likes to bring Merry Christmas and he likes to bring smiles on people’s faces.”
But he only gives presents to those kids who behave themselves throughout the year. Kids told West Hawaii Today that St. Nick has his elves out — including one perched in their very classroom — to keep an eye on them for him.
“If you’re bad, then you don’t deserve presents,” said Christian Hanano.
Instead, said Sarai Santana, you get coal.
Coal is, of course, a practical choice over something like spiders: it’s not an ideal Christmas gift, but still certainly useful.
“If it was spiders, Santa would feel bad, but that’s why he gives coal because it’s kind of useful,” suggested Norman Cano.
Useful to make fire, he added.
But before he can drop off the presents, his elves have got to build them. It takes Santa’s elves a while — anywhere from three minutes to a full year — to build all of the toys he needs to deliver.
Zayne Telles suggested the elves have magic powers to get all the materials needed to build the toys and then use their hammers to put them together.
Famous, though, said she saw in a movie that Santa has a magic door behind which he keeps all of the supplies to build all of the toys.
But once Christmas Eve comes around, said the kids, Santa prepares his eight reindeer — four girls and four boys — by putting on their “jingle bells” to make them able to fly.
Mrs. Claus, meanwhile, is left at home in the North Pole to watch over the elves.
Santa’s method of choice for dropping off toys is through the chimney, but of course, those aren’t always common sights in the tropics.
In that case, kids said, he uses the door — unless it’s locked. In that case, there were a couple (questionably legal) ideas about Santa’s alternatives.
“Then he has to break the window,” said Sarai.
Christian disagreed.
“That would be bad,” he said. “And all of the people will say, ‘Who did this to my window?’”
And after a long night of delivering toys — and coal — Santa’s back to the North Pole.
There’s no time for a vacation, said the kids, if he’s going to do it again next year.
