If you know Santa is alive and kickin' don't read this one.

Christmas time rolls around and all of the kids are excited for the magic soon to arrive. There's the reindeer, elves workin' away at the North Pole, giving and receiving gifts, and certainly not least thought about is Santa Claus. The diminishing-with-age question "Are you going to write to Santa?" is as frequent as "What did you ask/do you want for Christmas this year?" But is all this excitement for this figment of tradition acceptable given the possible consequences? Is believing in St. Nick all right even though some may love celebrating his tradition so much that it's mentally straining for them to let him go?
What happens to a youngin' who discovers that the jolly old white-bearded man, who slides down their chimney with his magical bag, which has every toy in the world for every kid, is all revealed to be his/her very own folks? (I warned you, but no, you had to go ahead and read it anyway) Are they heart broken? Is the trust between them and the ones who postulated such a horrible possibility irreparably damaged? In my experience I've not met anyone who has been absolutely traumatized by such an event. And if one would seem like they are, it's likely they'll get over it soon enough, if that person is mentally stable. Do the positive effects that accommodate the enthusiasm for this belief make it worth while?
What would Christmas be like without Santa? It would probably be hard to, even in it's truthfulness, have the kids focus their attention on Christ and the true meaning of Christmas. So maybe Santa is the wee lads' 'n' lassies' version of the spirit of giving and sacrifice, so that they can more understand and maybe even ponder about how much the spirit of Santa conveys giving, cheerfulness, etc. In all honesty I think Christmas to a child would be much like thanksgiving or another such holiday, because of the children's lack of understanding and seriousness. Once the child grows maybe some of the magic and enthusiasm is transferred from Santa to the true meaning of Christmas.
Overall, I think the upkeep of Santa and other such fantasty-like aspects of Christmas is worth it to liven up so many youngsters' imaginations in spite of improbable, trivial consequences. At least, I don't think there was any damage done to the trust between me and whoever told me the truth about it, and if there was then I should hope I've gotten over it by now...