Elf on a Shelf has become the big thing to do lately. The basic idea being that this little Elf sits on a shelf all day and flies up to the North Pole to report to Santa on your kids behavior of the day. Then when the elf returns to your house in the morning, he finds a new place to sit for the day.
We have an Elf, sitting on a shelf. He’s a cute decoration that sits next to Santa, and that’s where he’ll stay.
There are a lot of reasons I don’t particularly care for this new tradition, but here are my top 3:
It puts the focus on the wrong things. We get excited about gifts, just like anyone else, but this elf’s only purpose is to report to Santa if my daughter’s behavior is worthy of presents. I don’t want her first thought each morning to be of finding her elf to see if she’s still on the nice list.
He’s creepy. I think if I could name the elf I’d call him Big Brother. He’s just there to spy on us and report to the big guy (Santa) our behavior. That’s just creepy. Plus I’ve seen to many pics of elves in compromising positions to find him cute.
I just don’t want to. Really, this is the biggest factor for me. We host a big Christmas party, we decorate our house, we bake cookies, we sing carols… we do lots of stuff to celebrate the season. This, honestly, feels like the straw that could break the camel’s back. Will a creepy little elf really make a difference in my families enjoyment of the holiday season? If I thought so, I’d go for it.
I know lots of people love their elves, and that’s just fine by me. I love new traditions, and anything people do to bring their families more joy. The elf doesn’t do it for me. I’m sure not everyone wants to have a Bonfire & Carol Sing. 🙂
