Each Christmas season, the tale reappears:
Santa drops in through the chimney with cheer.
It’s cozy, it’s classic, a scene we all know,
though housing trends say it’s not always so.

Only about half of U.S. homes still align
with a chimney or hearth reaching up to the sky.
New builds favor efficiency, layouts, and light,
not brick stacks and soot from Christmas past nights.

Older homes had chimneys, it made sense back then.
Today’s vents and heat pumps don’t need them again.
And yet, every Christmas, without any doubt,
the cookies are gone by the time morning’s out.

Which tells us that Santa, like markets and plans,
has adapted with ease as the landscape expands.
The chimney was handy when most homes had one,
but never the rule, just how the tale begun.

So whether your home’s old, brand new, or in between,
with brick, metal vent, or no flue to be seen,
one truth remains as the season draws near:

Leave out the cookies —
he’s already been here. 🎄