Last week, I woke up to a message from my Secret Santa asking if he could deliver my gift in person. Though unsure of what to expect, I agreed and arranged to meet today.

So, after cheerfully requesting my half asleep roommate to look for me in nearby dark alleys if I don't return by nightfall,I set out to the neighboring McDonald's for the meetup. As I began scanning the clientele there for any one with eyes not totally transfixed on their burger and (admittedly delectable) fries, who should walk in but Santa himself, dressed in his full festive regalia and with a big bag of goodies on his person. Both my surprise and excitement knew no bounds.

After a jolly hug and merry wishes, Santa gave me my gift and seeing that my fingers were itching to open it, he asked me to do it pronto. He then began to spread cheer among the children at the restaurant and to say that all their little hearts were overjoyed to finally see Santa outside his throne at the mall would be a criminal understatement.

Now on to the gift itself, it is not just a single gift but a bunch of smaller ones, all of them immaculately wrapped and each with a small note explaining its significance to him. There is the famous pure maple syrup from Elmira, Ontario along with assorted sweet sugary goodies including Toblerone, Reese, Lifesavers, Toffifee and a Kinder Surprise egg that I've heard so much about (just to mention a few). Not having grown up in this country, most of them are new to me and I can't wait to sample each and every one of them. Suffice it to say that this Christmas is going to be the stuff of dreams for my sweet tooth.

Best of all is a great looking journal meant to inspire me to go back to writing poetry, a hobby of my childhood that I somehow allowed to slip away from myself (Thanks Santa. I think this is the push I needed to pick up my pen again).

Santa sure made my day (not to mention week, month and year) with his presence and lovely gifts and if you're wondering how you can get him to be your Secret Santa next year, here's a hint- Santa is Canadian (of course).