A Quantum Christmas
When science and magic are one
Snuggly Sanji
This was such a cute picture of Sanji snuggling and looking up at me for snuggles.
…Time for this week’s story…
A Quantum Christmas
Jacob had fallen asleep waiting for Santa. Now, Alan had to tuck him in before going back downstairs to eat the cookies left out for Santa. It didn’t matter that Alan was a physicist, or how smart Jacob was, he was determined to believe in Santa. There was nothing Alan could do about it.
“There’s no way a rabbit poops chocolate,” Jacob said of the Easter Bunny. For Santa, Jacob would explain that since Santa was the spirit of Christmas, he wasn’t bound to physical rules. Being from the same place, his reindeer could fly, like all spirits. When Alan asked why Santa didn’t fly around by himself to deliver presents, Jacob replied, “because he wants company.”
“Santa…” Jacob said sleepily as Alan closed his bedroom door.
Alan crept quietly back toward the stairs, socks landing on the soft carpet one toe at a time. He watched his path to ensure he did not hurt himself or knock anything over. Slipping downstairs, he turned the corner and touched down in the living room. Once there, he was stopped in his tracks.
Stunned, Alan found himself face-to-face with a portly man in a bright red suit standing between him and the Christmas tree. Caught with a cookie dangling from his lips, the man was equally as surprised. The stranger used his white glove to push the rest of the cookie into his mouth, then smiled with a playful wave.
“Who… what are you doing in my living room?” Alan was beside himself. This stranger got into his home without making a sound. More baffling was the temperature. No doors or windows had been opened to let in the snowy night air.
“Well, Alan, I’m delivering presents and eating these delicious cookies you left out for me. Didn’t you tell your wife you’d be up as soon as you put Jacob to bed?”
“I… “ Alan looked at the cookies but could not form words. This man was privy to a private conversation Alan had with his wife an hour prior, and he knew their names.
“Oh, right. You came to eat the cookies. Well, why don’t we enjoy them together? Your face tells me you have questions.” The man took a seat, dipping another cookie in milk. With a wave, he invited Alan to sit.
Alan scanned the room in confusion. The light in the room was strange. There were colors he could not account for and the air had a glow to it. There was an ambient energy Alan could not explain. Without a clue as to what else to do, Alan sat down and grabbed a cookie, staring wide-eyed at the stranger next to him.
“Who are you?” Alan finally asked.
“I’m Santa Claus.”
“But…”
“I’m not supposed to be real?” Santa asked, receiving a silent nod in response. “Well, what is real? You’re a physicist. Humans recently discovered that everything in the antimatter spectrum can be viewed through concave lenses because antimatter light waves bend in the opposite direction as regular light. You read about that nine days ago. Combine that with your conversations about me with Jacob and your mind has been opened to all the possibilities. Things existing all around you, your whole life, that you’ve never known about. Now that you understand all those things could exist, it all now becomes part of your reality. The magic becomes real once you realize it’s actually very scientific and tangible. Am I making sense?”
“You’re making far too much sense. Is this a prank? Have you been hiding in the closet or something?” Alan looked around his living room, perplexed. Santa let out a delightful chuckle and shook his head.
“No, my boy. I’m afraid I’m the real deal. You know, the last time an adult human saw me was during the Vietnam war.”
“Come on… seriously?”
“I’m telling the truth. It was some helicopter gunners. The American military was testing different color dyes for their night vision prototypes before they settled on green. They could see the different beings that exist in the different light spectrums. So, when they were testing blue on Christmas night, they saw me.”
“I’ve never heard about that before. So, you do deliver to the third world?”
“Of course! There just aren’t as many kids who believe in me out there. But, judging by you, it may not be long before the whole world can see me again! Oh, that would be wonderful!”
“So you’re real? You’re the actual spirit of Christmas?” Adam reached out and touched Santa’s coat while he munched on a milk-soaked cookie. The cloth was soft but durable. Static built up quickly and gave Adam a shock.
“Careful, I spend a lot of my time around the Earth’s ambient energy field. And, in case you haven’t noticed, we’re currently in a cross section of multiple spaces, or dimensions as you call them. That’s why things look a bit aqueous right now.” Santa pointed around the room, then rose to his feet.
“Could you elaborate?”
“Wish I could, but I must be off. I have many children to visit. Oh! I’ve got something for you.” Santa reached into his bag and pulled out a gift. He handed it to Alan and stood up.
“How do you pull gifts from your bag?” Adam asked in shock.
“Hah! I usually say it’s magic, but really it’s a combination of quantum entanglement and some yet undiscovered quantum mechanics! Merry Christmas, Alan.”
Alan looked up in time to see a flash of light zoom up the chimney. Hooves marched across his roof and the room’s light returned to normal. The gift was the last present Alan had ever asked Santa for. After wishing for it, he overheard his parents say Santa wasn’t real. Without Alan believing, Santa could never deliver it.
“Merry Christmas, Santa,” Alan said.
Henceforth, Alan eagerly waited for Santa with Jacob but always fell asleep before he showed up. They would awaken to a plate of crumbs.