To kick off the festive season this week we have Santa Claus Unmasked. The beautiful Markana got into the spirit of Xmas by posing as Santa Claus or Ms. Claus. So let's find out a little bit more about Santa.

Santa Claus, also known as Saint Nicholas, Father Christmas and simply "Santa", is a figure with legendary, mythical, historical and folkloric origins who, in many western cultures, is said to bring gifts to the homes of the good children during the late evening and overnight hours of Christmas Eve, December 24.  The modern figure of Santa Claus was derived from the Dutch figure of Sinterklaas, which, in turn, was part of its basis in hagiographical tales concerning the historical figure of Christian bishop and gift giver Saint Nicholas.

In the past few years we have seen trends toward political correctness and the re-branding of Christmas as the winter holiday. There is even a disturbing trend whereby the parents tell their children that Santa is a big lie because they don't feel like deceiving children. 

This year there has been a number of disturbing events in the world and sometimes we need to feel the good in the world. If that means saying Merry Christmas and believing in Santa Claus to think about peace and humanity, then I say Merry Christmas and long live Santa Claus.

To see more of Markana go to Santa Claus Unmasked.

Watsonphotography.ca creates unique images of fashion, models, people, travel, nature and racing sports by Toronto photographer Peter Watson.