With Thanksgiving coming up later this week, I’m expecting the “Keep Christ in Christmas” posts to start popping up on Facebook any minute now. I’m going to make a preemptive strike. I’m going to warn you right now that over the next month, if I run into you, I’m going to wish you Happy Holidays. I know that some of you will be offended by that. Because you want me to remember that I’m supposed to be celebrating the birth of Christ, and therefore the only proper greeting is “Merry Christmas”. You’re wrong about that. When I offer you “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas”, I’m not taking Christ out of anything. What I’m saying is:
Happy Thanksgiving.
If you celebrate Christmas, Merry Christmas.
If you celebrate Hanukkah, Happy Hanukkah.
If you celebrate Kwanzaa, Happy Kwanzaa.
If you celebrate Winter Solstice, Happy Winter Solstice.
If you celebrate Festivus, Merry Festivus.
And Happy New Year.
So you can see where this would be a little time consuming. And then I’d be worried that I left something out. What about Ramadan, for example? When is that celebrated? And what’s the appropriate greeting: Happy Ramadan? Merry Ramadan? I just don’t know. And I don’t want to leave anyone out. I’ve considered the possibility of asking each person a series of questions to figure out exactly what to say. It would go something like this:
What holiday or holidays do you celebrate at this time of year?
Do you consider it appropriate to be wished well in your celebration or celebrations?
What is the appropriate wording for wishing one well in your celebration or celebrations?
So yeah, again, you can see that this would be a little cumbersome. Some people choose instead to just offer up the greeting that’s appropriate for the holiday of their choice. So those who celebrate Christmas might offer everyone a Merry Christmas, regardless of whether or not that person celebrates Christmas. And some people refrain from offering any well wishes if they aren’t sure of someone’s religious affiliations. That’s a safe option, I suppose. But I decided to take a different path. My intent is not to diminish the special-ness of any particular holiday. Instead I’m looking to respect ALL holidays. It’s an all-inclusive greeting. It states, “Whatever you hold dear at this time of year, I wish you well”. It’s meant to be respectful of everyone’s beliefs, to spread the sentiments of acceptance and good cheer regardless of personal beliefs.
So I hope that you’ll take my “Happy Holidays” greeting as a sincere wish for your happiness this time of year. In return, I’ll accept any greeting you wish to offer. If you offer me a Happy Hanukkah, I won’t feel the need to explain to you that I don’t celebrate that particular holiday. Instead I’ll just say thank you, and appreciate the sentiment. And if you find yourself being offended by the lack of godliness in my greeting, let me offer you some advice that my kids learned in marching band: “Suck it up, cupcake”.
Photos: Wix.com