Holiday Antics

I am purposely titling this specific blog "Holiday Antics" because of an unkind (yet poignant and thought provoking) gesture that was posted on my Facebook account a couple of days ago. Let me explain....I am a document-er. I like to record my world visually and the holiday season is a delightful reason to pull out the well-worn camera. So, slowly, through the days of the holiday I have been posting the different events that have been occurring in my and my son's little world on Facebook. The title of the album is "Christmas 2009" with a sub-title that reads, "and so it begins.....another holiday season". One of my so-called (but no longer) friends added the following small, yet profound, statement. He said, "It's called Christmas."

It's called Christmas.

First of all, this person obviously can't read, because if he had checked the bold title of the album, it does make a strong reference to Christmas, hence the title "Christmas 2009". But that three word statement is uncomfortably scary for me because if I swayed with that philosophy I would be excluding a whole hell of a lot of people from joining in on celebrating the holiday season with me. And I would be excluding a whole hell of a lot of celebration and joy during the holiday season as well. How can three words be so close minded? How can three words be so biased and exclusive? To me, that statement is full of assumptions that I should only be enjoying that specific day, Christmas day, with only like-minded individuals that believe in the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Hey, all the power to him for having such a strong faith in his religion. I grew up in a religious home believing in that same ideal, but that doesn't mean that it's just about mangers, and sheep, and shepherds, and Mary and stars and frankincense. Because I'm not a religious person now, and Christmas still is a special day steeped in tradition and culture and family and friends and magic and beauty. The whole holiday is, with Christmas day being just one of those days and I want to enjoy that day with everyone, even with like minded Pagans like myself. (haha)

And talk about putting all of your eggs in one basket. If I had just focused solely on Christmas day, then I would have to dismiss all of the fun that Alexander and I had the other day, sliding down the Kinsmen beach hill with our buddies (even though there's not enough snow and we're picking pebbles off our butt from the experience). I would have to dismiss the concert that was put on at the school, where my son got on stage and sang a really cool song in the local Ojibway language. I would have to dismiss the late night gift wrapping and beer drinking fiascoes which made for some very creative wrapping designs. I would have to dismiss the funny jiggling Wal-mart Santa hats. I would have to dismiss snuggling in bed with my son and singing Christmas songs, both traditional and contemporary. I would have to dismiss the magic of Santa bringing a stocking on Christmas eve instead of Christmas day "just because he happened to be in the neighbourhood". I would have to dismiss my son singing carols to the senior citizens at Northwood's Lodge. I would have to dismiss eggnog. No, that's just not right. You simply cannot dismiss eggnog just because Mary didn't happen to lactate eggnog on December 25th how many thousands of years ago.

So I figure this guy needs to stop worrying that his Jesus is being taken out of his Christmas because of statements such as "the holiday season". As long as he believes that to be his Christmas, nobody can take that away from him because it's a truth and a thought and a belief in his own mind. It becomes scary when he thinks that he has the power to control my truth, and thoughts and beliefs.  If I believe that Santa and Jesus are kickin' it old school back in a hay-filled room at the North Pole, that is my prerogative and in no way should alter his beliefs of  Christmas day. I simply believe in enjoying every day, and encompassing all of the small, simply, joyful pleasures of life and putting them in an album on Facebook referring to the holiday season. Life's too short to get caught up in semantics.

And I hope that all of you are given enough rest and tranquility to have that in your world too. Merry Christmas to you, regardless of your personal interpretation of that. I wish you peace.