Tis the Season, 2023 Edition
by
R. Brian Campbell
Based on some of the things I’ve already seen on Social Media, I felt that this would be a perfect time to update my holiday rant, originally seen on Facebook and other social media, then published in my book, Out of My Mind, in 2020.
I usually post this in December, but here we are on November 20th and I am already seeing “War on Christmas” posts, so I felt that it was time, once again, for my annual holiday season rant.
For those of you who haven’t heard it before, it goes something like this. Being a big fan of Christmas, I have gotten very tired of our politically correct society where we have to worry about how to greet people for fear of offending them. I have done some studying and came to the conclusion that there are so many holidays being celebrated in December that we, as a multi-cultural country, should be able to use any and all of them equally and without fear of reprisal. Let me show you what I mean.
In fact, looking at my Holiday and Observance calendar, the first thing I discovered was that I have already missed one. Diwali/Deepavali, the Hindu and Sikh Festival of Lights, began on November 12 and ran for five days. On November 24th, Sikhs will be recognizing the Martyrdom of Guru Bahadur. And this is just the beginning.
This year, the celebration of Chanukah runs from December 7th to 15th, so Happy Chanukah to all my Jewish friends. From December 3rd to 24th, Christians will observe Advent. Many Buddhists will celebrate Bodhi Day or Rohatsu, the Day of Enlightenment, on December 8th.
This year, Jewish people will be observing Asara B’Tevet on December 22nd. The Winter Solstice is on December 21st. In the USA and Canada, Hindus celebrate Pancha Ganapati from December 21st to 25th, while African Americans and Canadians celebrate Kwanzaa from December 26th to January 1st.
Of course, Christians, and many non-Christians, will be celebrating Christmas on December 25th, and let’s not forget Christmas Eve, on December 24th, some by going to church, and some by watching out the window for a fat man in a flying sleigh.
Some prefer the pagan celebration of Yule, which runs from December 21st to January 1st, and I can certainly see the advantages in a tradition that involves sitting in front of a warm fire on a cold winter’s night.
The non-conformists of you may choose to celebrate Festivus, an alternative ‘holiday’ on December 23rd originated by the TV series Seinfeld. Snowbirds will be celebrating vacation season by heading to warmer climates (Feel free to take me along, I travel well). And let us not forget New Year’s Eve whether, for you, it falls on December 31st, or sometime in January.
The way I see it, as Canadians, we are so multicultural that, instead of arguing over whose holidays are more important, we should embrace all of our diverse traditions. In fact, I think we should simply declare the entire month of December a National Holiday and take the whole month off. Anybody with me?
I apologize if I have missed your traditional holiday, but as you can see, there are far too many to list. The simple fact is that December truly is a Holiday Season, and it is and always should be a season of peace and goodwill to all.
So from my family to yours, however you celebrate it, have a safe and happy holiday season.