I was raised on a farm five miles outside small-town city limits (then);
daycares as such were not available. You were expected to grow your own
children, and I had limited contact with other children outside of school
for several years. I may have maintained the illusion unblemished as long
as five years.
>They do understand that a game is being played and that it
>is more fun to /believe/ Santa Claus exists (sort of like what we do
with
>imaginary numbers or role playing) and reap the benefits.
It's even more fun to practice genuine affection and/or charity as an
adult, and see the glowing eyes that children can generate when they're
happy, even if it is only infatuation with a favored toy.
>It's a type of self-aware self-deception I think we learn at an early
age and use for the
>rest of our lives. Much like /believing/ that our models of the
universe are truth.
I find as my understanding deepens that I have less and less use for
/belief/, preferring greater and greater amounts of understanding.
Self-aware self-deception seems like a contradiction, but it appears to
be useful sometimes. I find it particularly useful when faced with a
mountain of paperwork that I can deceive myself into considering useful
or necessary.
Enjoy!
James Wright