As we drove past the Westby House Inn and Restaurant on Sunday morning, there stood Santa on the porch, all decked out in his finest red outfit, but something was missing… his head! Someone had vandalized Santa, decapitated him, and stole his head.
My first thought was, ‘What kind of low-life, thoughtless, sorry excuse for a human being would do that?’ Why do people have to destroy things? So much time and effort goes into decorating and trying to make things look nice and festive for the holidays. It can be very aggravating and disappointing when people vandalize or steal those decorations. I don’t know what possessed someone to cut Santa’s head off. If I had to venture a guess, I’d bet that alcohol was involved prior to the vandalism. If alcohol wasn’t involved, then the perpetrator(s) are really sick people.
This decapitation of Santa reminded me of an incident that took place in Platteville, where Linda grew up. Friends of her family had a large display in their front yard with Santa riding in his sleigh, pulled by reindeer. They also had many strings of lights that added to the scene. People always drove by at night to enjoy the display.
One morning when they woke up and looked out the window, Santa was gone, along with many strings of lights. Santa certainly hadn’t decided to leave on his own and take the lights with to light his way. He must have had help. Many tracks in the snow provided evidence that Santa had assistance in exiting his sleigh. It’s just wasn’t the same with Santa not riding in his sleigh. It gave the scene an empty feeling. After letting people know that Santa was AWOL, they heard through the grapevine that a Santa, looking a lot like the missing one, had been spotted in the hallway of one of the dorms at the university, along with a nice display of Christmas lights.
Ted contacted a local police officer, who accompanied him to the dorm in search of the missing Santa. They found Santa “sitting” in the hallway on one of the floors, along with the nice display of lights. Ted informed the embarrassed students who had been caught with Santa in their midst, that Santa belonged back in his sleigh in front of their house, and he’d appreciate getting his lights back too. He wanted everything returned and put back the way they had found them within the hour. He and the officer then left the dorm.
Shortly after Ted arrived home, a group of students were in their front yard, returning Santa to his sleigh, and stringing the lights up again, as best they could. When they were finished, Ted’s wife, Doris, invited all the students inside and served them Christmas cookies and hot chocolate–a true gesture of the Christmas spirit of giving. What had begun as an alcohol-fueled prank in their minds, but in reality, the theft of another person’s property, ended on a positive note over a cup of hot chocolate, cookies, and friendly conversation. I would bet that those students have never forgotten that kind gesture of forgiveness after they returned Santa and the lights to their rightful place. That really exemplifies the Christmas spirit of peace and good will. Kind actions speaker louder than harsh words and retaliation. I would hope those kids learned a valuable life lesson from that experience.
I hope that whoever vandalized Santa at the Westby House would feel some remorse for their actions and return Santa’s head so it can be repaired and he can once again stand on the porch waving to the young daycare children as they walk by. The children have wondered why Santa went away. Mike and Marie told me that this isn’t the first theft of Christmas decorations and other items they use to decorate their property throughout the year.
Good Lord people, this is Westby, Wisconsin, where most people know each other, not some big city where a crime like this is just another daily occurrence. When we were growing up, my parents never locked the house when we went some place. I don’t think there was even a key for the door if they had wanted to lock it. People were trusted. A man was only as good as his word, and many deals were sealed with a handshake. That was as binding as any contract in the mind of anyone who valued his reputation for being an honest person.
Now we’re at a point where doors are locked and anything not nailed down may disappear or be vandalized. I hope it doesn’t get to the point where we all need to install security cameras to guard our Christmas displays and property year ‘round. Although it seems we’re already at that point. On this morning’s TV news, a man was shown stealing inflatable Christmas displays from a front yard. The thief’s image was captured on a security camera and hopefully someone will recognize him. This didn’t look like a spur of the moment, alcohol-impaired indiscretion. He knew exactly what he was doing. I don’t think there’ll be any hot chocolate and cookies for him.
With Christmas just around the corner, I hope we can all remember Doris and her hot chocolate and cookies, and treat all our fellow travelers and their property with kindness and respect.
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