Commentary: Do we believe in elves? Of course! Otherwise we’d miss out on the magic

We all buy into a suspension of disbelief in certain areas of our lives. The daily surprise is their real purpose: One morning a girl might awaken to see the elf nestled next to her bed; another day a boy might find his household’s elf ensconced in the kitchen in the midst of making pancakes. For years at a Catholic church in the South Bay, the hugely popular early evening Christmas Eve Mass featuring a children’s choir would come to a close after Holy Communion with the priest standing before the congregation. The lights would dim, and up the main aisle would come Santa Claus carrying a big red bag. The children would laugh and applaud, parents would take pictures, and Santa would walk over to a Nativity scene on one side of the church, kneel for a moment, and then wave and exit through a side door into the dark evening.