Santa Parade 2022

Someone let the cat out of the bag that I am an actor, or at least that I've pretended to be one on more than one occasion over the years. And so, I was recently drafted to play Santa Claus. I actually played Santa Claus once before a number of years ago, when I was a missionary in Peru. But that's another story for another time.

As it turns out, getting the chance to play Santa Claus is both really good for your soul and also a wonderful way to get you into the holiday spirit. I, in fact, had two chances to dress up as St. Nick this month for a couple of different ward activities.

The first came on Saturday, December 10, for the ward Christmas party---the first one we've been able to hold in person in three years due to pandemic restrictions. Our little shindig took place in the form of a brunch in the cultural hall. Santa made an appearance for the Primary kids, handing out both ho ho hos and plush toys for each one.

Successful first test. The second opportunity came with the annual ward Santa parade on Tuesday night. The concept of the parade began in 2020 due to the aforementioned pandemic restrictions. Because it wasn't a good idea nor was it safe to get people together in a closed space with COVID-19 out and about, someone had the brilliant idea to take Santa out to visit ward members rather than the other way around. It was such a big success that it was repeated again last year. Though the annual in-person ward Christmas party returned this year, we decide to keep the parade going due to popular demand.

I had a little help this time, because JB was asked to portray Mrs. Claus alongside Santa. And though it was a bitterly cold night (in the 20s and 30s), and the beard kept causing my glasses to fog up and obstruct my view, we had a wonderful time.

I don't know if I'll ever come closer to being treated like a celebrity. People of all ages love Santa and Mrs. Claus, and they frequently smiled back at us. We waved and shouted Merry Christmas! and ho ho ho, and they responded. They came out of their homes to wave back at us. Cars honked their horns as they drove past. At one point, we created a second parade on the sidewalk, as a number of kids had come outside to follow us along for several blocks.

A man pulled his car over and brought his young daughter out to meet us. He was as excited as she was and said that it was her first time meeting Santa in person; she'd never had the chance before because of the dadgummed pandemic. At another point, a group of native Spanish speakers huddled around us, and they were pleasantly surprised to hear Santa speak Spanish back to them. "Santa habla cada idioma" ("Santa speaks every language"), I told them.

In the process of all this, we did a little missionary work for the ward. The Bishop, Young Men and Women, and youth leaders walked alongside the parade and passed out candy, talking to active ward members, the less active, and nonmembers alike. Santa doesn't discriminate, either.

We were pretty pooped by the end of the evening. But it was an evening well spent nonetheless.

Merry Christmas, family and friends!