Shefali Shah’s social media posts rarely aim to impress. They tend to arrive quietly, often shaped by memory, and stay with the reader because of their emotional honesty rather than spectacle. Her recent Christmas post follows the same tone—personal, reflective, and unguarded.
In the post, Shefali looks back at a childhood Christmas Eve that left a lasting impression on her. She recalls being told, at a young age, that Santa wasn’t real, and the disbelief that followed. What stayed with her was not just the moment itself, but the instinct to argue back, to resist, and to hold on to something that had always felt unquestionable.
She writes about how that experience made her feel cheated at the time, even though, with distance, she now recognises the love and effort her parents put into creating that magic for her. The memory sits in a complicated space—between loss and gratitude—without trying to resolve either feeling neatly.
Shefali then connects that experience to motherhood. When she had children of her own, she writes, the world of stories, rituals and make-believe returned. Even while knowing the truth, she chose to recreate the same magic for her children, keeping it alive for as long as she could, until they eventually outgrew it.
Reflecting on the experience, she wrote, “It’s beautiful to know otherwise and still believe in magic. Magic came wrapped in ribbons, stuffed in stockings, and born from a parent’s heart , a belief that quietly stays with you even after you grow up.”
The thought lingers beyond the festive moment. It isn’t just about Santa or childhood traditions, but about how belief changes with age. Knowing the truth doesn’t always mean letting go of wonder; sometimes, it simply means choosing it differently.
