A father was decorating the Christmas tree with his daughter. “Dad,” the girl asked, “what are these shiny balls in this box?”
“Ah, darling,” her father smiled, lifting one carefully. “These are very special. They’re called qubits.”
“Qubits? What is qubit?”
“Let me show you. Just help me first hang them on the tree and connect them together… See?” He pointed at the wires as the glittering spheres hung from the branches. “Each shiny qubit is connected to three others. And through these golden couplers, they all connect to the main qubit right here on the very top.”
“Okay,” said his seven-year-old daughter, with her tender and curious voice.
“Now, I’ll show you how they work.” Her dad took out his phone. “On my screen, I have a special simulator. When I press this button…” He tapped the screen. A soft click came somewhere from the tree, and suddenly, every qubit began to glow with a gentle, inner light.
“Wow!” she breathed. “It’s amazing! They’re all shining!”
“Yes, they are,” he said. “Now watch. See how they start working together? The ones close to the top are changing color, growing brighter than the ones near the bottom. That’s called interference. It’s like a qubits’ song, but made of light.” The girl clapped her hands, delighted.
“But this is just practice.” Her dad said, waving a hand. “Tonight, when Quanta Claus comes…”
“Quanta Claus? Isn’t that Santa Claus?”
“Well, yes. Quanta is his another name from a… different, more magical book.”
“It’s a funny name, Dad! Quanta Claus!” She giggled.
Smiling, he continued. “When Quanta Claus arrives tonight, there will be a much bigger interference of light. All these qubits will blaze with color, flashing and swirling in a symphony of light more complex and more beautiful that anyone could imagine. They’ll shine like stars. Then, the big qubit on top will grow brighter and brighter, as if it’s gathering all the light from the others.” He leaned towards her, in a whispery voice. “Quanta Claus will touch it… and POOF!” (He made a grand, sweeping motion with his arms.) “Under the tree, all our gifts will appear! That is the great quantum magic of Quanta Claus.”
His daughter grew thoughtful. “But, Dad… all my friends at school say Santa Claus isn’t real. They say parents put the gifts there while we sleep.”
“No, my darling, that’s not true,” he said with the gentle and confident voice. “Quanta Claus is very real, and his magic is just different. I can’t make gifts appear from qubits, but he can.”
“Where does he live, then? In the North Pole? Or… inside this qubit?” she asked, tapping one of the glowing spheres.
“A wonderful question. Nobody knows for sure. Somewhere outside our spacetime, I think. You’ll learn about all that when you do your PhD.”
“I can’t wait to do my PhD,” she declared, “so I can look for Quanta Claus and learn his magic!”
“Okay,” he laughed, rising from the carpet to lift her up and carry her to her bedroom. “But for now, you need to go to sleep.”
“Okay… but I’m going to come down tonight to watch him arrive!”
“Ah, now that’s a very bad idea,” he said. “We can’t actually see Quanta Claus. And if you interrupt him in the middle of his magic, the gifts might not appear. Or they might be… different from the ones you wished for. The best thing is to sleep soundly. They say dreams influence the quantum magic, too. In your dreams, you can tell Quanta Claus what you wish for, and he might be able to make it for you.”
“Okay, Dad… You know what I’m going to dream about?”
“What, my little scientist?”
“I’m going to dream of a giant Christmas tree, with millions or billions of qubits! And of Quanta Claus, using his magic to make wonderful gifts for every child in the whole world!”
Her father kissed her forehead, his heart full. “I love you, honey. And I’m sure that one day, you’ll help make it happen, just like in your dream.”
Sasha Lazarevic
December 17, 2025
