Christmas miracles, or the adventures of Santa Junior
Once upon a December, amidst the infinite snows of Lapland, sat an infinitely sad Santa Junior. He was chewing an infinitely cold piece of fish pie — the pizza delivery didn’t work because of weather conditions.
There was not a soul around for Santa to share his problems with. Absolute silence, just the howling of the snowstorm.
Suddenly, Santa heard someone approaching. It was not the squeaking of steps in the snow, but the flutter of wings.
“Hi there, Santa Junior!” Raven croaked. “What makes your face so sour? And where is your grandad — Santa Claus Senior?”
“Hi Raven! Grandad is away together with all his elves to SantaCon. And my face is so sour because I totally messed up,” sighed Santa Junior bitterly.
“Tell me what happened. But, first, please give me a little of your fish pie, because I hate listening to sad stories on an empty stomach.”
“Yes, sure. Please help yourself,” Santa hurriedly gave the whole piece of fish pie away to the hungry Raven.
Raven began eating and listening. He heard how Santa Senior had left for SantaCon, assigning Santa Junior with a very important task. The boy had to sort out all the letters from kids to Santa about their Christmas wishes, as well as make a register.
But, as usual, there was someone eager to spoil Christmas. The Black Witch, usually afraid of Santa Senior, took advantage of his absence. She sent a horrible snowstorm, which whirled all the letters far away. And there was nothing the Santa boy could do! Christmas for all kids of the world was at risk.
“Well, this is as crappy as your cold fish pie,” said Raven. “But no worries. You are a good person, Santa Junior — you shared your meal with a hungry bird. So I will help you as well, and lead you to a secret place where your problems can be solved.”
“Really? What kind of place?” the boy’s face brightened up a little.
“The wishes of good people come true there. Stop asking questions — let’s go!”
The flutter of wings was now accompanied by the squeaking of steps. Raven was leading Santa Junior through the white snow — hillock after hillock, turn after turn.
Suddenly, a house with Christmas lights in the windows emerged from the snow. Santa did not even need to knock — the door opened by itself and he stepped inside.
The burning fireplace and the scent of cinnamon immediately made his heart feel warmer, just like it used to in his great grandma’s house.
“Welcome, Santa Junior,” said a friendly elf wearing glasses appeared at the door. “Sit down and have some hot chocolate. I think I already know your wishes.”
“Thank you, kind Elf!” said the boy, embracing the hot mug with his frozen fingers. “As you probably already know, the letters from all the kids to Santa are lost. I need to somehow discover and list all the kids’ wishes. Perhaps, I could get a crystal ball like the one my great grandma used?”
“Oh, forget about a crystal ball. That’s the magic of the past. I can offer you the latest magic,” said the elf.
He stretched his hand out to the shelf and took a tiny mysterious bottle with the infinity sign on it.
“What is it?” Santa’s eyes sparkled.
“One drop is enough to create something amazing out of emptiness — something that will have infinite powers.”
“What is the name of this magic elixir?”
The elf’s voice hushed to a whisper. “This is Drupal, Santa Junior. Drupal 8.”
“Never heard of it. What will it create?”
“A powerful website. You can use it to send a Christmas greeting to every kid, ask them whether they have been nice or naughty and what they want for Christmas. Then you can sort their wishes by name, by country, by city, by age, by type of present, and in whatever other way you like.”
“Wow! But there are so many kids in all countries of the world speaking different languages.”
“Your site will have multilingual superpowers.”
“Impressive! You know, my special concern are kids who are waiting for their Christmas presents even more eagerly than others, but cannot use sites in the same way — the kids with disabilities.”
“That’s all taken into account. Drupal 8 has special powers for these kids. Your site will be easy for them to use.”
“Everything sounds so perfect that it’s hard to believe. But wait, what about the Black Witch? She will try to hack my site and steal the information.”
“She can try! Her trolls will sooner break their finger against the keyboard than break your Drupal site — it is very secure.”
“Great! I have one more little wish, please. Though Santa Senior does not approve of it, many kids are using mobiles today. Could my site display well on these devices?”
“Yes, perfectly!”
“Thank you so much! But you do understand that kids across the globe number in the millions? Can my site handle them all?”
“Infinite powers, Santa Junior! Remember this and never forget!”
...Once upon a December, amidst the infinite snows of Lapland, an infinitely happy Santa Junior was coming out of the House of Wishes. The snowstorm had stopped, and the dazzling sun rays were now dancing on the snow.
Santa knew that Christmas was saved for all the kids. He was looking forward to an unforgettable Christmas journey with Santa Senior. The reindeer would be running like lightning, striking sparks with their sleigh, and, of course, there would be jingling, jingling, jingling bells!
“Ho, ho, ho!” he exclaimed, and realized he had finally learned to produce the famous laugh right. Our young Santa has grown up!
Do you like the story? What are your own wishes? We are sure you are a good — no, a great person — so we will secretly share with you the address of the House of Wishes. It is here. Stay happy and always believe in miracles! ;)