Nora would like a bicycle without a back pedal, Lea would like a two-meter-tall teddy bear and Max would like a remote-controlled dinosaur. During Advent, tens of thousands of children’s wish lists pile up in the seven German Christmas post offices.
Classics such as painting and handicrafts, Lego, Playmobil or Barbie dolls are in high demand, as well as mobile phones and tablets, says Rosemarie Schotte, volunteer manager of the Christmas post office in Himmelstadt, Lower Franconia.
The children often have very precise ideas, which they communicate to the Christ Child or Santa Claus. Five-year-old Ina, for example, would like “everything possible for the doll’s kitchen, namely a vacuum cleaner, a dough mixer and a smoothie maker”. Jaron would like an “electric guitar with a good amplifier”, Louis a cotton candy machine and Klara a fart pillow. Some children add the order number of an item or stick pictures from advertising brochures so that the right present is under the tree on Christmas Eve.
The toy industry is hoping for good Christmas business despite higher prices and a generally gloomy consumer mood. The past crises have shown that parents and grandparents prefer to save for themselves and instead spend their money on the children, says Steffen Kahnt, Managing Director of the toy trade association.
Desires that cannot be paid for with money
But in addition to toys or books, many children also express wishes that cannot be paid for with money. “Often gifts no longer play the sole leading role. About half of the wishes are ideal,” estimates Britta Töllner, spokeswoman for Deutsche Post for the Christkindpost branch in Engelskirchen near Cologne. “Peace” is mentioned particularly often this year: “Please can you make the war stop and everyone have enough to eat?”
The hard-working helpers in the post offices answer every letter – also in different languages, because the letters come from all over the world. This year, for the first time, the Engelskirchen Christkind is also answering in Ukrainian. Töllner reports that several letters have already been received from Ukrainian children. “I want dad to come,” writes eight-year-old Alina, who currently lives in Wuppertal. Sofia from Dortmund would like “nice clothes”, a laptop and that she learns to speak German and English.
This time, the children’s letters also contain wishes for a nice and peaceful Christmas at home with striking frequency, says Töllner. For example “a quiet party”, “snacking cookies by candlelight”, “that grandma and grandpa are coming” or “that mum and dad have more time for me”. The assumption of the Christmas mail expert: The big crises and the worries of the adults awakened a need for security and harmony in the little ones as well.
