Once, during the middle of a long drive, my then-preschooler hit me with an unexpected question: “Mommy, is Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer real?” I tried skirting the issue — “Well, honey, he lives with Santa at the North Pole” — to no avail: “But is he REAL?” She wasn’t taking anything less than full commitment. I don’t like the idea of not telling her the truth, but in the heat of the moment, sweating bullets, I caved: “Yes! Yes, he’s real!”

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