"Holiday" Rant

[helblonde]

Get an f*ing grip, people. Just get an f*ing grip. It's Christmas. It's a national holiday and people can cope.

Our boss is going out of town tomorrow for a combination of work and leisure. He won't be around until January so he wished us all a Happy Holiday, since he can't say the "C" word at work. I think that's bullshit. It's a G-D national holiday and nobody should have to worry about being exclusionary by wishing people a Merry Christmas. No one get all het up about Thanksgiving do they? Who do folks think we're thanking, anyway? If you want a national holiday to get riled up about, how about ol' T-day? 

But nooooo, it has to be Christmas. For years now all I've been hearing is the hyped-up ongoing debate between the agressive Christians "Put the 'Christ' back into Christmas" on the one side and the super-PC, hardcore atheists "you can't foist your religion off on me" or, more insidious, "You can't say that and exclude all those people who aren't Christian" on the other side. 

Well, I live in the middle. I didn't grow up going to church. My mother was a hippy new-agist who wanted nothing to do with organized Christianity. My dad puts on whatever religion his current wife holds. With mom, he was a hippy; with wife2, he went the Santaria route; with wife3, he's a Christian.

But I'll tell you, I grew up with the whole Christmas shebang: trees and lights and cookies and Santa and caroling; the works. It had nothing to do with the birth of a very nice jewish boy 2000 years ago. It was about getting together with family, sharing a good meal, feeling the magic of wonder and anticipation, and, yes, exchanging a few gifts. It was burnishing memories with every ornament pulled from the boxes. It was bringing light back into the world with every candle lit. It was savoring the anticipation of others' joy whilst making the perfect gift. It was playing card games and talking long into the night. It was a very American holiday: no God, but goodness. 

Christmas, as most folks I've run across celebrate it, is a distinctly American day. It has all of the hallmarks of our tendency to collect pieces from all over, shake it up, and vomit it over the fronts of our houses. It is not a celebration closed to people. Plenty of jews, atheists, santarians, pagans, and whatever celebrate, because it doesn't have to have anything to do with the Christ child. It is simply a day to bring joy and magic back into the world, whether you do that by dressing up an evergreen, wishing Jesus a happy birthday, or just having a fun dinner with people you love.

So you can stuff your "Happy Holidays". Merry Christmas to all.

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