Dear Santa: My Christmas list for 2021

Dear Santa,

I’m at the age where I don’t really care whether I get anything for Christmas, but there are some gifts I wouldn’t turn down. Actually, I don’t want any of this for myself. Still, I do have a pretty long list for you this year, and some pretty tall orders. So if you could just come through on some of these, I’d be eternally grateful.

A court system that actually delivers justice, not “get out of jail free” cards via endless appeals for the wealthy and powerful.

Civil discourse online (I know, I know, but I can dream). And while we’re at it, on TV. And in real life.

Another season of Schitt’s Creek.

Real journalism, the way it used to be.

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s dream is to come true.

John Lennon’s Imagine-ation to become real.

For history to be as popular as Instagram.

A living wage.

A cooler planet.

Sanity about vaccines. My mother was paralyzed by polio. She died early because of it. That vaccine came just a couple of years too late for her. ’Nuff said.

More art. More science. Less propaganda.

For Freddie Mercury, Leonard Nimoy, and Alan Rickman to still be alive. There are others, too. And if we’re talking fictional characters, I nominate Han Solo.

For people to be famous based on how smart or how accomplished they are, not how obnoxious they are.

For Jake Paul to fight an actual boxer. A good one. And lose.

That quality be more important to success than “going viral.”

That character matter more than religious affiliation.

That actions matter more than identity.

That hard work be rewarded again.

That loyalty be defined as trust well earned, not blind obedience.

That people who call themselves Christians hold the teachings of Jesus in higher esteem than the hatemongering of political demagogues.

That we remember how to think for ourselves.

That we learn to listen.

That we stop taking each other for granted.

That we view sensitivity as strength, not weakness.

An end to cancel culture on both sides; more second chances and fewer wasted.

More celebrating people and less taking them for granted.

An end to bullying.

Affordable prescription drugs, and prompt, affordable medical care.

Fewer guns and more dialogue.

More reason and less superstition.

More compromise and fewer conspiracy theories.

More problem-solving and less grandstanding.

That Wonder Woman would show up and use her lasso of truth on a whole assortment of politicians and media pundits.

World Series rings for the San Diego Padres. I’m a Dodgers fan, so this may be sacrilege, but after the Chargers flew the coop, San Diego fans deserve some comfort and joy for a change.

Donald Trump behind bars. Maybe in Oz from the HBO classic. He’d fit right in with Vernon Schillinger’s “brotherhood.”

A definition of “patriotism” that doesn’t involve hating half the people in your own country.

That everyone could know the joy of having a purring kitten curl up on their chest.

More trees.

Clean air.

More smiles and laughter.

Less stress.

A good night’s sleep under a warm blanket on a cold winter’s night.

Hope instead of bitterness.

That nice guys, and gals, would finish first for a change.

A cure for cancer. That’s been on everyone’s list for a long time. It’s overdue.

Thanks, Santa. Even if you can’t deliver everything, thanks for trying. It shows there’s still a reason to hope for Christmas miracles.