A New Year Begins

A new year begins in tracking Santa. While most of the world enjoys a day off on this first day of the year we find ourselves at the North Pole enjoying a period of reflection. January is always a time of looking back and setting new goals as we look forward.

Before that process begins with meetings tomorrow, January 2nd, I wanted to give you an idea what to expect.

First of all, for you, there will be a little period of silence. It’s not that anyone at the North Pole wants to ignore or neglect you at this time. Your elf supervisor has been charged with completing evaluations and ratings for each of you. That takes some time. They need to review you activity, attendance, understanding, efforts and behaviors – and somehow boil it all down to a number.

I know this causes some anxiety. I go through it myself because Santa, as my Elf Supervisor, does the same thing to me. We all want to do well but this stuff about getting a grade is kind of nerve wracking.

So you understand why they want it to take some time. Please be patient. The supervisors are going to need weeks to accomplish this.

Meanwhile, I meet tomorrow with Santa. So do many other department heads. Nothing gets decided tomorrow. In fact, it will be several weeks of meetings that will take place in January. All of this talk will eventually lead to new plans for 2023.

For now, please don’t speculate. 2022 was a great year. We learned a great deal. We accomplished a lot. 2023 will be all about doing better. And that will mean changes.

Changes to our jobs. Changes to our titles. Changes to our website. Changes in just about all that we do.

Last year was epic change. This place doesn’t even look the same that it did a year ago, does it?

Expect that to happen again. And, like last year, it will get better.

We at the North Pole tend to stick to traditions. So not everything will change. It will be a mix of new and old. It will be fun. It will be challenging.

We hope 2023 will also be easier. We pray for less hardship, less sickness, less loss and a lot less sadness in this shiny new year. Much of what happens in the world is beyond our ability to impact. But in our world – the world of Santa, elves and the North Pole – there is much we can do to experience happiness and to bring happiness to others.

After all is said and done, even in January, that is what it is all about.

I’m looking forward to doing it with you again.

Elf Roger Star

International Director of Santa Trackers at the North Pole Flight Command

Roger is an experienced sleigh pilot, designer and flight engineer who has worked the past 42 years as a flight supervisor in the Tracking Department at the North Pole. Previous to that Roger served as a designer in the Research and Development Department during the crucial years of 1947-1974, an era known for breakout designs in Santa’s sleigh that broke long standing speed records. Roger was the lead designer of Santa’s 1968 sleigh, famous for surviving a brutal blizzard in Bavaria.