Sue Silverstein is the art and theology teacher for Bishop Maginn High School. She is also a talented artist and painter. Yesterday, she asked several students in her art class to model in different poses as Santa Claus, and she asked her class to do several two-minute sketches of the model Santas.

She was struck by several sketches by Freshmen Ler Wah, a refugee from troubled Myanmar. Ler Wah, said Sue, is one of the most gifted artists in her class.

I was struck by the sketches she made so quickly, and on impulse, asked Sue if I could offer them for sale (the sales going to the school). Sue said sure, but she wondered if anybody would want such simple pencil sketches. I asked for $50.

The sketches offered a different way of understanding Santa Claus, so often portrayed as roly-poly and jolly and somewhat mindless. These sketches had real feeling.

I knew they would sell. It took about four minutes for Laura Hutchinson of Indiana to offer to buy the sketches, and she was just in time. A half dozen offers came in after hers.

“Ler Wah’s sketches capture more than the usual 2 min sketches,” wrote Dolores Dingwall, “Her eye transfers to her hand in a remarkable way!”

Congratulations to Ler Wah, Sue, and the class. Creativity is one of the most powerful forces on the earth, especially in the hands of good teachers and unjaded and pure children.

Merry Christmas to you, Ler Wah, you’ve earned it.