Mall Santa Pitfalls

There are so many other things that can trip up or even trap the Mall Santa.

A couple of the don'ts are worth a more careful second look.

Santas revisited basic don'ts are:
!Santa does not drink any alcohol.
!Santa does promise specific presents for the child.
!Its not Happy Holidays its Merry Christmas.

Lets take these in reverse order

Christmas is a religious holiday, specifically a Christian religious holiday. There is no such thing as a politically correct Merry Christmas such as Happy Holidays its either Christmas or its not. The other religions have their own mid-winter celebrations. If they wish to join ours, that is their prerogative, but not to the point where we become other than what we are a Christian religious holiday. Santa must walk a fine line here, not preaching but not forgetting exactly who he is (a toy maker) and why he is there celebrating Christ's birth! As Santa you could and probably will have all sorts of interesting encounters with people of other religions; and as Santa it is your job to turn them into pleasant visits with Santa and not Religious Confrontations! Santa is, after all, a toy maker. Nuff said.

We've seen how Santa handles pets. But how do you handle requests for specific presents? Well deal with this further in Santa is wired.

This can be a difficult thing to handle, but it must be handled and once you learn the tricks its not all that hard.

I'll never forget the first Christmas the Grandkids came to visit Santa. Mrs. Claus and our daughter were literally browbeating them all the way to the Mall with Remember, now, he's Santa Claus and not Grandpa! It must have worked, to what cost we may never know, because they never once blew it.

However, the second year they came to see Grandpa Santa we had a different problem. I was wired. I had an elf who had a radio and who fed me tidbits to help convince the child that Santa really was real, and maybe gain an insight into not only what the child wanted (why the child was there to talk to Santa) but also what the child was actually getting what they wanted or something else.

They both wanted computer games, different ones, of course, and I got nothing else from my elf so I assumed our daughter had decided it was ok after all. The younger had a lazy eye and needed to wear glasses to correct it and so had been told he would get the computer toy for his birthday in the summer, instead. Bad assumption on my part. Our daughter let me know in no uncertain terms What? You promised him that computer game? How could you know he cant have it till later, he needs to stay away from computers for at least six months because of his eye!

Oooops! Well, if you're wired and the wire works you are up on the game. But if you are not wired, or the wire lets you down, you need a fallback position. This is mine.

The child asks Santa for a specific present, or several. Several are always better because it gives Santa some choices to work with. You get a nod from the parent that this is what the child really is getting, or you get over your wire that this is what the child is getting. Its ok, then, to say so but its far safer to go with options. And perhaps better for the child to be looking forward to a special surprise for Christmas just for them and just from Santa, instead of knowing what they are getting?

Well, Dana, that sounds like a pretty good thing to want for Christmas. Santa will try to get you just what you wanted most for Christmas, but if he cant, how about if Santa brings you one very special present from your list, just for you from Santa, and maybe even something you really wanted more? Would that help make this a great Christmas, maybe the best Christmas ever? or how about if Santa gets you something really special, something just for you, just from Santa? Would that make a pretty good Christmas, do you think? Think we might even be able to make this the best Christmas ever, if we work at it a little?

Remember that the child is there to see Santa about making Christmas special and Santa is doing just that, making this a very special Christmas indeed, and within the limits of Santa. By this point I've got an enthusiastic child eagerly anticipating their special surprise, just for them, from Santa Claus.

As far as drinking goes, I cannot emphasize this enough. First, I love the taste of a good mixed drink. So I generally choose not to drink. And one of my particular hobbies is making fruit wines. I make several fruit wines every year and Mrs. Claus says I make very good wine I like them, too. But during the Christmas season I simply do not drink at all. El zippo, nada, zilch, period!

About the Author

Loring Windblad worked as a Santa Claus for many years, mostly for family and friends. But beginning 10 years ago he took it to the next step, as a Mall Santa. His newest Santa Claus endeavor is at http://www.santaclausca.com