I am a Christian. Well, I was brought up a Christian – and though I rarely attend church, I always pray to Jesus (or God) when I find myself in scary situations, like a car accident.
I am a Christian. Well, I was brought up a Christian – and though I rarely attend church, I always pray to Jesus (or God) when I find myself in scary situations, like a car accident.
However, I want to set the record straight. I am a firm believer in saying “Happy Holidays,” not “Merry Christmas,” as the proper greeting when saying hello to someone during the holiday season. Yes, I did argue for the opposite position in my counter-point column against Editor Brady Rhoades last year. I’m also cool with someone saying “Merry Christmas,” just as long as they remember that there are people – a lot of people – who don’t celebrate it.
It’s just polite, folks; it’s respectful and the responsible thing to do, with so many different religions and groups of people celebrating important holidays during the month of December.
The Jews have Chanukah, which Rhoades talks about in his column this week. That holiday actually starts on Saturday, Dec. 15, so make sure to say “Happy Chanukah” to your Jewish friends.
There’s also Kwanzaa, a week-long celebration that acknowledges African-American culture. As always, it will take place from Dec. 25 until Jan. 1, and it’s now recognized in Canada as well as the United States, a sign it’s growing in popularity.
Last but not least, don’t forget the Winter Solstice. Some people – well, most that I know – like to dismiss this day as an outdated, pagan ritual. Still, we live in America, where a person has the right to worship Zeus or Satan, and a few people still practice this ancient holiday, though I doubt think they think of it as a holiday. In fact, I work with someone who, every year, takes a day off work just to celebrate the Winter Solstice. He also started his own religions, as within his rights, called “The Religion of Bob,” which I won’t explain in this week’s column.
I will try to explain, using Wikipedia, the Winter Solstice, though.
“It’s the solstice that occurs in winter, a time at which the sun is appearing at noon at its lowest altitude above the horizon. In the Northern Hemisphere this is the Southern solstice, the time at which the sun is at its southernmost point in the sky.” In other words, it marks the beginning of a new cycle, when, according to our ancestors, animals mate and other strange phenomenon happen.
I’m hoping nothing too strange happens this year, considering the Winter Solstice just happens to fall on Dec. 21, 2012 – the same day that certain History Channel programs keep claiming the world will come to an end because that day marks the end of the Mayan calendar. They even made a movie about it called 2012, starring Woody Harrelson.
Now, I know the world will eventually come to an end. It’s a certainty, a scientific fact. I hate to spoil your holiday season, but the sun can only burn for so many billions of years before it extinguishes, like the hot amber flicked from the cherry of a lit cigarette.
Yet I highly doubt that planet Earth will meet its demise this month. For starters, the sun is still yellow, a color that signifies it’s still fairly young – the equivalent to someone in their late 30s. Also, there’s an asteroid headed our direction, but 4.3 billion miles away, unlike the one in the movie Armageddon.
True, there have been some signs of doom, like three Chase Banks popping up along a mile stretch of Valley View Street, and the Servite High and Cypress High football teams both missing the playoffs for the first time in forever.
Still, strange things happen all the time, so don’t give away all your money to some doomsday preacher telling you it’s all about to end, because I am confident that we will all be celebrating Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanza, the Winter Solstice, and any other holiday – that I forgot about – without a hitch. Besides, our economy – especially the part comprised of small business – needs you to buy gifts, not give your money away to some doomsday expert.
Happy Holidays.
