STRESS IN US ALL

The feeling of STRESS is something that each and every one of us will go through at one time or another in our life time.

For those of you who know me I am probably one of the calmest and laid back people you have ever met. I never seem to fold in pressure situations, I approach all situations with a listen first mentality and I react from there and I never let them see me sweat.

I have been under a tremendous amount of Stress over the last couple of months due to financial issues, family sickness, and job related overstress and will admit there are times when I just say to myself and anyone who will listen “When can a guy catch a break?” I am ashamed to admit that I have found myself thinking “I try and do well for other people and change their misfortune, when does Karma repay me?” I know this is a wrong way of thinking; I have never done a Santa Drop for personal gain ,I do for others because I want to not because I expect a return of good fortune. Stress can ruin you emotionally, physically and financially. How you manage your stress is the best way to overcome lifes issues , Create Balance.

Find a release for your stress, there is no need for “POOR ME” statements.  I know that it sounds cliché but it’s true. I have found many ways to try and deal with my stress, do they work all the time NO but if you don’t try you never know.
These are some of the things that I used to do, may work for you and may not.

GOLF:

 Due to finances I have not been out in a long while but there is just something about whacking the crap out of a little white ball that gives so much satisfaction and release.  I love Golf

FISHING:

Sitting beside a lake waiting alone with your thoughts, great exercise in patience

HOCKEY:

Playing a game on a weekly basis gives me the opportunity to not have to think about the outside pressures and to be a big kid again.

GARDENING

If you see me in the yard picking weeds and fluffing up the bark mulch in the flower beds you know that I am having a stress related bad day. There are almost no weeds anywhere within the vicinity of my yard at the moment.

GIVING BACK:

I like to donate time or energy to helping others, when I find a charity or organization that I can help in some small way I find that my confidence grows and I realize that my problems are not only those of my own but are being felt by others and maybe I am not so bad off.

The most important stress reliever that I have is spending time with my kids and Mrs. Santa in the yard, watching the kids run and play and the only care they have is whether or not they will get a Popsicle in the bath when they are done gives me a great sense of calmness. Having a strong support network behind you helps also, Mrs. Santa is the most incredible women that I have ever met and I so lucky to be loved by her.

The tides will eventually change and there will come a time when you feel that nothing can go wrong. Manage yourself and your health so that you are able to enjoy when that time comes. Find what helps you release and give yourself at least 1 hour per week to enjoy the moment. In closing just remember

“You can only do what you can do and nothing more”

Be kind to each other and create a smile everyday

Follow me on twitter @FVsecretsanta

Lets make a statement together

There are so many ways to make a statement in this world.

My heart goes out to all the people affected by this week’s Boston Bombing, and the explosion in Texas and the bombings in Iraq. I cannot express in words how deeply affected by the incidences in Boston I was, I as millions of others found myself glued to the TV trying to make sense of the events that had just taken place. Mortified and angry mixed with sadness and jubilation that more people were not killed, I did not know how to react, I did not know what to say. I still don’t.

It is obvious to me that whoever did this was out to do one thing, Send a Statement to the world, as they knew the world would be watching.

The one key piece that the bombers did not expect of this I am sure, is just how the fantastic people of Boston and around the world would react. There was such an outpouring of compassion and people willing to put themselves in harm’s way just to save another’s life, this among all the tragedy and carnage was able to renew my faith in humanity just minutes after it had been shattered.

The brave men and women of the Fire dept., Police dept., National Guard and the Marathon volunteers and runners that rushed into the smoke and flames to pull people to safety, I applaud you and you will forever have my respect and admiration.

The most heinous part of this latest tragedy is the fact that there are people just minutes after this event happened, setting up bogus funds and donation avenues   to capitalize on the emotions of the fine people in this world. How can you honestly spend that money knowing that you also have the blood of an innocent 8 year old boy and others on your hands due to the coward that we know as only “terrorist” to those who prey on the kindness of others, remember Karma always comes back around!

So many people ask what they can do to help; here are some of the ways that I recommend

·         Donate blood when you can to help those in your local area dealing with illness or in the event that something was to happen in your community so that the fine doctors and nurses can be prepared.

·         Give to recognized organizations such as , Salvation Army , Canadian Red Cross , American Red Cross

·         Donate clothes and food to local shelters and food banks

·         Thank your local Police men and women, firefighters and military personnel  for the fantastic job they do making our world a safer place on a daily basis

Please don’t forget the most important thing you could do , don’t be afraid , this is what people who create terror want is to have the fear of the people , get out support local business , attend events and celebrate life. World Peace can be achieved if we all just work together and continue to not live in fear from the few that choose to TRY and tear us apart.

Let’s make our own Statement “WORLD PEACE”

I love you all in this regardless of color, race, or religion  

MY top 10

As a Santa for the people, I get to have the pleasure of creating smiles and giving hope to some of those in our communities that cannot afford nor have the ability to help themselves. I realize that the art of giving back is not in all of us and I don’t hold that against anyone, it’s a life style choice. The advantage that I have is, I wake up each morning and I see my son who has a disability and it reminds me that the problems I have to face in the day seem minimal to what he has to live with every day.(yes I do see that as an advantage , make's me humble)

If we judge people only on the amount of money they give you are negating the whole purpose of what you are trying to achieve.

Option 1: Would you like to have 1 person donating a $1000.00 to your cause?

Or

Option 2: would you like to have 1000 people giving $2.00 each?

Its option 2 all the way, you have doubled your fundraising intake and now have 1000 people who believe in your charity and letting others know about your charity goals. The other exciting factor is that the average person has a social circle of approximately 150 people that they know. You have just grown your charity by 15,000 people. I will take that anyway of the week. Moral of the story is that when you find yourself feeling maybe sheepish or embarrassed that maybe you can only donate a small amount of change, just think “if you start counting the pennies, you lose track of the dollars you are creating”

Today I wanted to bring attention and mention some of my favorite Charities (all charities do amazing things) that I look forward to supporting in any way that I can all year long! The nice part about doing the SECRET Santa is I can do what I do with anonymity and the focus stays where it should be, with the people who need the help the most.  Do I donate a lot of money? I am just a blue collar guy who has the same economic issues as each one of you so the answer is, No not always, I feel that giving time to a charity is also a huge step in being part of a solution, and just as important to the outcome they are trying to achieve.

My personal top 10 charities

BC Children’s Hospitals   www.bcchildrens.ca / @BCCHF

Variety The children charity/  www.variety.bc.ca / @varietybc

BC Cancer society  www.bccancerfoundation.com /@BCcancer

Surrey Food Bank  www.surreyfoodbank.org / @Surreyfoodbank

Langley Animal shelter / Patti Dale www.lapsbc.ca /

Salvation Army   www.salvationarmy.ca / @Salvationarmy

Kidstart   www.kidstart.ca /

Terry fox foundation   www.terryfox.org / @terryfoxbcyukon

Canuck Place Children’s hospice     www.canuckplace.org / @canuckplace

SPCA   www.spca.bc.ca / @FMSPCA or any branch near to you

These are just some of the amazing charities that I like to support all year through. Last but not least is a charity that is very near to my heart and will always have my gratitude and support for what they have done for my son.

WarAmps Champ program. www.waramps.ca / @theWarAmps

They have no government funding and everything  that they do for children without limbs is provided through fundraising and private donations. For all of you that purchase WarAmp key chains each year, I thank you and my son thanks you for giving him the ability to have two arms just like the rest of his friends.

I would encourage all of you to have a look through the list of charities, read their Bio and discover just how much impact the charities, Staff and volunteers make in our communities with no concern for personal glory.  Look them up and Say Thank YOU.

Whether it be a few pennies or a few minutes of your time #giveback, it makes a world of difference

Courageous Moms and Dads

The Santa Family would like to wish all of you a very blessed and happy Easter.I hope that everyone who is reading this had an amazing Easter weekend! I know I did, very busy but great none the less. I was able to spend time with my family, Grandma Santa made the trip down from Penticton to share in the Easter egg hunt, I am sure that she will be at home resting from her mini vacation, she is not used to having 3 kids jump on her at 6am wanting to play Batman and Robin with Nerf shoot darts.

The most enjoyable part of the weekend was being able to see my mom play with the kids and to see the smiles on everyone’s face. It was however a bit sad in a way. I was watching my mom and realizing that she is not getting any younger,that being said she has not lost her passion to make people smile.

I remember when I was young and she was going through Chemotherapy for her Cancer. Single mom, 3 kids, Cancer, she would still find a way to make you smile, was and still is the most positive person I have ever met. I still can picture the day that she came home from the doctor when I was 12 and told us that she was going to have to have a Mastectomy, my sisters and I were crying and we worried for our mom. Mom looked us straight in the eye and said “You don’t have to worry about me, Cancer or any muggers”!  I asked  “What do Muggers have to do with anything” she said “ I will be fine because I have you kids, the Cancer can’t beat me and if I get mugged I can just tell them I am Flat Busted”. We all laughed and from that point on we knew she would be ok!

My wish is that everyone could be this positive with their lives. There are so many problems with the world today. Together with the attitude like Grandma Santa we could put a dent in allot of issues that plague us.

With it being Autism Awareness Day I would hope that each and every one of you find a tweet that is related to Autism and RT to spread the word. Unless you are in that world everyday  You have no idea what it is like to live with a child with Autism until you have one. I have so much respect for the parents that care for children and adults with Autism every day, I do know what it’s like and it makes you a stronger person. You are all amazing.

I know it’s difficult to go into stores, Restaurants, find babysitters for a night out and get schools that are willing to help knowing how difficult it may become. The worst part is the looks and stares that you get when you are out in public and have an episode, sheer ignorance. More often than not the adults are worst that the children. Can't tell you how many times I have heard someone say “what a brat” “why not smack that kid” “why would you bring a child in here when they are acting like that” and the best one is “that attitude comes from the parents”. There is so much ignorance that is associated with Autism or any neurological or physical disability that it’s disheartening to see, especially in this day and age of the internet and smartphones, you can look up anything and gain knowledge in seconds.

The next time you see a small child in the mall, restaurant or anywhere having a difficult time, please use some sense of common courtesy and think, maybe they are just having a bad day. To gain some knowledge and learn more about Autism please visit.

My personal favorite for what they have done for children with Autism

http://www.canucksautism.ca/        Twitter: @canucksautism

  1. Doug Flutie, Jr. Foundation for Autism

2. California Autism Foundation

3. The Northwest Autism Foundation (NWAF)

4. UK Autism Foundation

5. RT Autism Awareness Foundation

6. Autism Delaware

7. Utah Autism Foundation

8. Parker Autism Foundation

9. Grant a Gift Foundation

10. Lowcountry Autism Foundation, Inc

Be kind to everyone you meet, Smile as it may be the only one someone sees all day

Santa