Do You Believe?

In Miracle on 34th Street, one of my favorite Christmas movies, when a very young but skeptical Natalie Wood pulls the beard of the Macy's Santa Claus, she discovers it isn't just a fake. She hears him speak to children in other languages. She sees the letters children all over the world have written, asking for presents, delivered--by the U.S. Post Office--to this same Santa. And she starts to believe.

My own nephew just began believing in Santa again, after seeing a very similar thing happen in his school--Santa's beard was real, so Santa must be real, too, right?

And way back in 1897, when a little girl named Virginia wrote to the New York Sun to ask if Santa was real, because her father told her, 'If you see it in the Sun, it's so,' what was the editor's response?

"Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus."

So tell me, do you Believe?

This holiday season, Macy's (how fitting!) wants everyone - from the most enthusiastic to the most cynical- to Believe in and embrace the holiday spirit of love and charity.

Every year, at Christmas, for as long as any of us can remember, kids have dreamed about Santa bringing them that special present at Christmas. They spend weeks trying especially hard to be good (don't want to be on Santa's Naughty list!). And they write Santa a letter, hoping he'll grant their wish.

This year, Macy's is collecting these letters in a special Santa letterbox at all Macy's stores. For each letter received, Macy's will donate $1 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. And the Believe Meter will measure America's belief, based on our collective spirit – including the amount of letters received and other current events that reflect the season's generosity.

Please join me in supporting the Macy's Believe Campaign this holiday season. Encourage your children to each write a letter to Santa, and have them drop their Christmas wish lists in Santa's letterbox at a Macy's near you.