As a kid, the one thing I always look forward to each year was writing to Santa.

I'm sure many people follow this same tradition and it's probably still done today.

The only difference with me is that he used to write back.

My parents encouraged me to write my first letter when I was 8. In hindsight, I figured my parents just didn't know what to buy me and would use this as an excuse to know what I wanted. How would they know that I wanted a specific U-Gio Dole disk to match my friend Zach, so we could pretend it'd be like the characters in the show

unbeknownst to the fact that those things were an absolute finger trap catching skin

every time you snapped it open and that they absolutely wrecked your cards.

If they were to just ask, it would give away the surprise.

So instead, they would give me a Christmasy piece of paper and a week to think of a nice message,

along with some ideas of what I wanted.

My mom and dad would let me sign it, write the address and put it in the post box.

A week later, I get a letter back in just as nice paper with a list of things for me to do.

This is where the fun would begin.

When I was 8, I asked for the aforementioned Yugio Dool-Disc and that year the instructions were pretty simple.

The letter was filled with metaphors of locks and keys, the key to happiness and locks of the heart, fluffy things like that.

If I were older, I'd have probably been able to figure out what the instructions were from

the riddle alone, but luckily from my eight-year-old brain there was a clear set list at the bottom.

It was simple. I had to turn Mrs Harris's desk key and take it.

I also had to adhere to the following stipulations. I was to not get caught and I had to get rid of the letter afterwards.

Burn after reading, just like a spy. I loved it.

I was filled with excitement like any kid that's given a

covert mission. It was mid-December so I didn't have much time left until school was

out so I plan carefully.

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