We are barely a week into December. Nevertheless, this year’s Christmas calendar on news has already created tremendous engagement. Because what is actually good to show in a Christmas calendar for children? Should it just be about cozy pre-Christmas time? Or should it give an insight into the harsh realities of life that many children and adults live with every single day? “Snøfall 2” does the latter, and garners both praise and criticism. Mother with cancer In the series, we meet ten-year-old Noah and his mother. Noah has written a letter to Father Christmas in which he wishes his cancer-stricken mother to get well. He is afraid that the letter will not arrive in time. Dagbladet has interviewed a mother with children aged four and 11. They chose to turn it off after two episodes. “Oh no, not now again, I thought when my son and I sat at home and watched the premiere of ‘Snøfall 2′”, writes widower and father Eivind Løvdal in a comment on news Ytring. Løvdal writes that his wife died of cancer three years ago, and that he now feels that the life of himself and his 11-year-old son has become a “literary cliché”. Although he emphasizes that they can both tolerate reading or watching stories about families where one of the parents has died, he believes that such a family situation happens all too often. Communications manager at news, Heidi Frogg, says that before the weekend a total of 77 inquiries had been received from the public. 38 of these were complaints about the series. Widower and father Eivind Løvdal believes that both series and books are too often about children who have lost a parent. Photo: Pia Sundnes – Life happens The fact that there is criticism of the themes in the series may be an expression of the fact that many people are extra wary of negative things that can ruin Christmas, believes Mirjam Østevold, family therapist at the cancer department at Haukeland University Hospital. – Christmas is the expectation of joy, coziness and good feelings. Then what is sad can become extra painful for many, she says. – Should children be shielded from this series? – No, I think this is a series that can show something about life as it actually is for many. – Think children can tolerate less than they do Nor does children’s book author Endre Lund Eriksen believe that it is harmful for children to watch this type of series. He has written several children’s books, including a book about death for children. – We adults often think that children tolerate less than they do. When we have to talk about difficult things like death, we put it into metaphors such as “grandmother has passed away” or “grandmother is lying down and sleeping”. Children’s book author Endre Lund Eriksen believes that we must tolerate the fact that TV series for children take up sad and unpleasant themes. Photo: Mathias Sommerseth Kjellmo / news The author believes that this type of statement can contribute to creating fear and uncertainty, rather than comfort. He believes that children need stories like the one Snøfall 2 presents, because cancer and illness are topics they have to deal with sooner or later anyway. – Most children’s stories are about something threatening Christmas or that Christmas is in danger. Because cancer is sad, it can also provide an opportunity to create hope for children. Critical of “cozy glossy photos” The family therapist believes that the series can be educational for both young and old. – Life happens, after all, and the series can help children gain greater insight and understanding of how other children may feel in the run-up to Christmas. Not all children just feel the warm feelings, says Østvold – And for children who have cancer themselves or have cancer in the family, it can be nice to see that there are others who do not just experience coziness around the Christmas preparations, she continues . Østervold is more critical of series that only show cozy glossy pictures of Christmas preparations. – I think that many adults have grown up with some Christmas calendars that have not reflected reality as it actually is. And these may have given the feeling of outsiderness in families who have not had it so easy. Ten-year-old Noah hopes his letter reaches Santa before Christmas. In the letter, he wishes the cancer-stricken mother to recover. Photo: news – Realizing that it is difficult The authors behind the series say it is completely conscious that they are addressing a serious topic in both this and other Christmas calendar series. – We understand that this is difficult for many to accept, but at the same time we believe it is important to show these children that the rest of us see that it is not so easy to handle everything that life has to offer, says Ingrid Marie Hafstad, one of the co-authors behind the series. The fact that parents with cancer became a theme for this year’s series is due to the fact that this is something that many children and young people experience in Norway today, and that not many series have been made for children about this. – The Christmas calendar is a series many people watch with the whole family. Then it can be a golden opportunity to use it to talk together about an important topic, says Synne Teksum, one of the other authors. An abnormally large number of letters have arrived for Snøfall and Winter is stressed. Noah and mom leave the hospital, and Noah hopes they never go back there again.
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– Sad things can be extra painful for many at Christmas – news Vestland
