I have never forgotten the firm belief I had in the arrival through the chimney (烟囱) of the little Santa Claus (圣诞老人), the kind, white-bearded old man who at midnight left in my tiny shoe a present I found the next morning.

Midnight! It’s the perfect hour children don’t know. What great efforts I made not to go to sleep before the little old man appeared!

I had both a great desire and great fear of seeing him, but could never stay awake until then, and the next day my first look was for my shoe. He never failed to carefully wrap (包装) every present for me. I would run barefoot to get my treasure. It never was a very expensive present, for we were not rich. It was a cookie, an orange, or very simply a fine red apple. But it felt so precious that I barely dared to eat it. What a great role imagination plays in a child’s life!

I do not at all agree with the idea that the lies about Santa Claus should be stopped. Doubts and truth come all too soon on their own. I very well remember the first year, when I was five or six, I doubted that it was not Santa Claus who put the cookie in my shoe. Since then, it has never tasted as good as the first few years of my life.

I noted that my son believed in him longer; boys are more naïve (天真的) than little girls. Like me, he made great efforts to stay awake until midnight. Like me, he loved the cookie baked in Heaven’s kitchens. And like me, the first year of his doubts was the last year of the visit of the good old man.

In over 5,000 years of development, folk art has become a source of other forms of Chinese culture. However, the diversity (多样性) of cultural forms and the influence of foreign cultures have also brought challenges to Chinese folk art.

Chinese folk art has many types, including painting, calligraphy, embroidery, carving and paper cutting. It is hard to say how many kinds of folk art there are in the country. On the other hand, it is also hard to tell how many of them have disappeared. The situation is becoming more and more serious. Some kinds of folk art came to an end naturally, while others disappeared because there wasn’t enough protection. Isn’t it painful to lose so many kinds of folk art simply because of the absence of protection?

Folk art has played an important role in carrying forward history. For example, the blue printed cloth in Jiangsu Province has been a part of China’s printing technology for so long that, it is of great value to those studying China’s ancient science, technology, culture, folk custom and art.

Chinese folk art is drawing the attention of more and more foreigners with its unique charm and miraculous techniques (独特的魅力和神奇的技巧). Many people are worried about its protection and further development.

Then, who will be the protectors of Chinese folk art? It has to be the government, experts and scholars and even the whole of society. Though China has passed laws to protect its cultural relics, they don’t include the protection of folk art. Experts and scholars should go out among the people and find top artistic works still unknown to the world. Such protection also requires the support of the whole of society. Only when we gather forces from all sides can we protect Chinese folk art.

Shaanxi kuaiban is a traditional Chinese form of storytelling in the Shaanxi dialect to the rhythm of bamboo clappers. It can be performed by a group or solo. The art form can be traced back to the late Qing Dynasty (1644—1911). At first, the art was used by farmers to share their knowledge and earn money. But now, more people perform Shaanxi kuaiban on different occasions—for example, at festival celebrations, parties and art shows.

Yang Jinlong, 45, is an experienced Shaanxi kuaiban artist. He first learned the art at the age of 9. Before that, he often went with his father, an amateur performer, to watch kuaiban performances.

“As a young boy, I was attracted to the art form because many of the stories are about heroes. The performer tells stories while playing kuaiban, and it's easy for the audience to remember the stories since all the lines rhyme,” Yang said.

He has practiced Shaanxi kuaiban for more than 30 years. Since 2003, he has been teaching the art form to young people. At 9 am on weekdays, he drives to primary and middle schools in Xi'an and teaches students about Shaanxi kuaiban until about 6 pm. Then, he returns home to prepare classes for the next day. On the weekends, he teaches for six hours each day at art education institutions in Xi'an.

Yang has made some adaptations to the art form to relate more to students. When he tells modern stories, Yang abandons the traditional gown and wears a suit. He also integrates many pop elements like tap dance, ballet, jazz dance and the rhythm of popular music into kuaiban performances. His stories focus on more trendy topics, like stories of heroes who have worked to alleviate poverty, as well as the Chinese Olympic team.

“Art education is important for students in China. Just as many students learn to play Western musical instruments like the piano and violin, there are many people learning traditional Chinese folk arts, including Shaanxi kuaiban. They are committed and passionate,” Yang said.