Round Up 2026

There are many good books out there and texts from which to draw inspiration from. With large language model AI software, drawing conclusions and having an “Aha!” moment seems more of an oddity than a commodity. Instead of thinking and connecting strings, we can just input all the manuscripts into a program and ask them to interpret things for us. This can be very useful when digging for clues, but there is a time and place for it.

I presented my lecture titled “About Christmas” via video to School of Santas in the summer of 2022. Since then, I have read more, thought more, and learned a great deal. As a vendor at the 2025 Lone Star Santas Round Up, I decided to talk to as many people as came near my table as I could. We spoke not just about what I had available for purchase and the projects that needed funding, but about those things we have in common.

I do not know if I truly have strong views on Christmas and Santa compared to most in this industry (I’ll let others be the judge of that), but I self-proclaim that I do. I have opinions and preferences. Finding that common ground with others sparks something in me, and I enjoy talking about the riches I have found in many good books.

I was approached by Jim Flinn, who heads the education arrangements for Round Up, who mentioned he’d heard from a few people they’d like to hear me talk in a classroom setting at a future Round Up. I gladly accepted. My chance had come; I wasn’t going to blow it. It’s not every day one gets to speak on a subject they love to a group of individuals who can sometimes be very judgmental if the speaker doesn’t fit the mold. Most of the guys in the profession have real beards and I have faced pushback, backlash, and verbal insults for my online instructional videos. Perhaps in person I’d have the chance to show my mettle.

Later that year I attended the Michigan Santa Expo which occurred at the same time as the CW Howard Santa School (you can read about that a few posts ago). Comradery, fellowship, and a flooding of love for Christmas and my fellow performers engulfed me. I was drawn to the books I had read years before, and to revisit the not-so-common texts which helped form Christmas into what it has become.

I didn’t make the time to have a slide show, but I did have enough time to structure an outline for those things I wanted to cover at the 2026 Round Up. I practised aloud during my morning and evening commute. I wish I had made more time to prepare, once Spring Break started, I was busy being a single parent and spending as much time as I could with my mates. This would be the first year they’d be coming with me to Round Up, and they did marvelously.

At Round Up I ran cameras for the courses, was a vendor, was on parent duty, and had to manage my own “last-minute” touches for my remarks. Heaven intervened and though I was incredibly busy and walked a lot, the filming, vendoring, parenting, and presentation seemed to go alright. New and experienced Santas and Mrs. Clauses were in attendance, and the questions they asked at the end were wonderful.

I would detail what I shared, but not only would that make this a very lengthy post, it would also defeat the purpose of you coming to see me give it next time at the Santa Family Reunion in 2027. Suffice it to say, I shared a lot and spoke on many works of literature, individuals, and occurrences of the 19^th century which are typically looked over when examining Christmas’ relationship to them.

I hope that I get additional chances to share my passion of history and Christmas (and perhaps Santa next time) to help illuminate many things the world (and sometimes the Christmas community) takes for granted.

I was asked by someone later, “so, what made you want to study the history of Christmas?” and I was a bit put off by that. Shouldn’t everyone who loves Christmas learn all they can about it? Should we not be content to idly sit by and refuse to learn more because our own first-hand knowledge is enough? I explained my reasoning: “I believe that if someone is to represent someone or something, they should do all they can to learn about that someone or something. What is it they say in Isaiah? Their lips draw nigh unto me, but their hearts are far from me?” That is a trap many have experienced in many fields and communities.

Complacency is a tree from which only rotten fruit will spring.

When we share something dear to us, we are being the opposite of a dragon guarding its hoard. I have felt many times some things are kept from public knowledge in this community because they are “trade secrets.” I also know where much is given much is required. I spent hours online my first few years as Santa figuring things out on my own. How many times have I found something online and once shared on social media the comments are a typical “post the link, I want one!” without any hint of a “thank you.” Some things are worth working (or doing a simple Google search) for. I believe it was written by someone much smarter than me “do not cast your pearls before swine, lest they turn again and rend you.” By demanding immediate satisfaction do we make a swine of ourselves?

Asking for help is one thing, expecting others to do the work is another. The Little Red Hen principle is very much active in our world now. Letting others do the work and then expecting to reap the benefits is immoral. This must not be.

It is my hope that when we sit and listen, we take notes. That when we attend a presentation, we experience a change, a surge, a desire to go and prove what has been taught. It is one thing to believe on the words of another, it is completely different to experience it first-hand. May we be changed by what we hear, and not simply scroll on our phones and forget what has been taught. I recommend a good book, a cup of cocoa (or cider), and to ponder on the written word without distractions. Come to know more about what you stand for as a representative of the man at the North Pole.

If we profess to be, it must be reflected in our preparatory actions.

I recommend:

Old Christmas – Washington Irving

A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens

Santa Claus, Last of the Wild Men: The Origins and Evolution of Saint Nicholas, Spanning 50,000 Years – Phyllis Siefker

Nutcracker and Mouse King – E.T.A. Hoffman (get an English translation if you must)

Prepare now, make him proud.

Yours as always,

Santa Stuart

P.S. I could have linked the books, but that would have made things too easy for you. Go, my little reindeer. Go and do a simple Google search and reap the fruits for yourself!