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HAPPY HOLIDAYS

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By Shari Scott (Islandshari)
December 25, 2007 Mail this article
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Views: 577

I have recently returned from a rather hectic and travel-filled vacation, during which I visited three different states, 8 different cities, and an endless variety of nationalities, languages, dialects and accents. America is nothing if not diverse. We have been advised that saying “Merry Christmas” is no longer politically correct, that we should say “Happy Holidays” instead. Okay…let’s look at that:

Gardening picture

While in Brownsville, Texas I received a manicure from a Vietnamese lady and though we each had some difficulty with the language we managed to enjoy a conversation regarding the relative distances of our home countries. I left her shop and immediately bought a delicious churro from a young Mexican man who could barely speak English, but he enjoyed my euphoria regarding the delicacy of his pastry nonetheless. I attended a Veteran’s Day celebration with my father during which I met several Canadian’s – known down there as Winter Texans.

All while I was traveling I was thinking about a conversation I recently had with a dear friend…a doctor who owns and practices in a clinic in Blythe, California. He is from Zambia, still speaks English with an accent and tends to get in trouble at border crossings because he insists that he is American. In Colorado, we ran into some Swiss at a store, and tried to help them make their purchases. In Hawaii…oh my, Japanese, Korean, German and Samoan all helped to make our vacation a polyglot of tourism.

We are a country comprised of bits and pieces of many different cultures, so I was thrilled to find a newspaper article that actually clarified for me why "Happy Holidays" is a perfect sentiment for this time of year. December is a wonderful month. There is a holiday for/from some country or people EVERY DAY OF THE MONTH! From the Festival of Freedom and Democracy Day in Chad on the 1^st, to Constitution Day in Nepal on the 15^th, there is a holiday on each day in between. There are national days, political days, religious days and pagan days throughout the month. And though you may think of December 31^st as New Year’s Eve, in Azerbaijan it is the Day of Azeri Solidarity, in Congo it is the Congolese Labour Party Day and in Scotland it is the Gaelic Hogmanay.

Here on Kwajalein we celebrate Christmas, much like most of America. We also have the eight days of Hanukkah, Las Posadas and Kwanzaa. For many people Christmas is a religious celebration, for many it is a time to enjoy the good to be found in people regardless of religious beliefs. It is a time of beauty, of generosity, of joy. The lights and music of the season, the general feeling of happiness and gentleness of spirit…from jolly Santa Claus to beautifully decorated Christmas trees, and the serenity of the Creche, all add to the celebrations of the other holidays of this season.

The dark, cold days of Winter need as much cheer as we can give them to encourage Spring to come back. Perhaps that is why there are so many holidays in December. Of course, in many parts of this planet December is the middle of blistering Summer heat…ahhh let’s celebrate Farmer’s Day in Ghana on the 6^th, or Army Day in Vietnam on the 22^nd. Sometimes a good celebration will help chase away excessive heat and humidity, just as it banishes ice and snow.

So, whether your Santa arrives on a surfboard pulled by dolphins, or on a sleigh pulled by reindeer; whether you are transported by Ave Maria sung by an operatic tenor, or Jingle Bells sung by Alvin and the Chipmunks; whether the brightly colored lights of the season light your way down a snow covered path, or a dry river bed…be they white and blue, red and green, or multi-colored…keep room in your hearts for all the holidays of this season. If you read the newspaper, or watch TV news, you may think we have precious little to celebrate. But if you look around you, at the faces you can see on the street, at your loved ones, at the bounty from your gardens, at the promise of the Spring, you will see that each moment of each day gives us myriad reasons to celebrate. Let us celebrate together, and share the joy.

From me to all of you - Merry Christmas, Season's Greetings, and of course - HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

About Shari Scott

For most of my 53 years I have been an avid traveler, and luckily I married one as well. We are now living (for the 2nd time) on the tiny island of Kwajalein in the middle of the Pacific. I have gardened in places as varied as the Rocky Mountains and the desert of Saudi Arabia, and many points in between. My passions include, but are not limited to: Family, friends, music, good conversation, and the wonders to be found in the oceans of our planet.

Subject: It's Christmas Day

Posted by chrissy100 (from Sydney
(Australia)) on December 24, 2007 at 3:11 PM:
Thankyou for the lovely article Shari ...it is early Christmas Day here in Australia ...Peace and Love to each and everyone!
Have a Wonderful Christmas and enjoy your Holidays
may 2008 bring every thing you could wish for.

Joy To To The World!

chrissy
...
Posted by Islandshari (from Kwajalein
(Marshall Islands)) on December 24, 2007 at 5:36 PM:
Chrissy....Have a "green and bright" Christmas, my friend!
...
Posted by KyWoods (from Melbourne, KY) on December 25, 2007 at 2:40 AM:
Shari, thanks for the interesting facts about all the holidays celebrated around the world this time of year! I enjoy learning about other cultures. Oh, and you and yours have a wonderful celebration, as well!
...
Posted by Dutchlady1 (from Naples, FL) on December 25, 2007 at 7:29 AM:
The understanding of other cultures will lead to our appreciation of all of them..... and is the first step to peace.
Thank you for a wonderful article from a Dutch gal who grew up with 'Sinterklaas' who arrives from Spain on a white horse on December 5th to bring gifts to all children who have been good, and leaves them in (and around!) their shoes!!
...
Posted by doccat5 (from Fredericksburg, VA) on December 25, 2007 at 9:00 AM:
Thanks for the reminder of the diversity of this great nation. We are truly blessed as a people in spite of all the problems and the cares. And I think we all still will go the extra mile for any of our own who need the help. Some years ago I got "hooked" on attempting to actually practice doing "random acts of kindness", what a lift to my spirit that has been. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and yours.
...
Posted by jadajoy (from Newport News, VA) on December 25, 2007 at 10:07 AM:
Merry Christmas Shari! Thanks for a wonderful article about the many Christmas blessings all over the world and may it enlighten and touch the hearts of all who read it.

Love ya!
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Posted by LouC (from Desoto, TX) on December 25, 2007 at 10:32 AM:
Thank you, my friend, for always helping us to see the good in all things.

Yokwe,
Christi
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Posted by Lily_love (from Central, AL) on December 25, 2007 at 11:23 AM:
Merry Christmas, and a Happy Holidays, as well as a Peace to our nations in the New Year. Peace to the World!
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Posted by Sharran (from Calvert City, KY) on December 25, 2007 at 12:08 PM:
Thank you for a great reminder, Shari. Beautiful article.
...
Posted by grampapa (from Wheatfield, NY) on December 25, 2007 at 12:09 PM:
Shari, what a nice thing to present today, to remind everyone that although we may have different holidays and cultures, we have many things in common with all people.

all the best to you

P*E*A*C*E

~ jan
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Posted by MitchF (from Oklahoma City, OK) on December 25, 2007 at 12:41 PM:
I love the way you write, have a wonderful day - blessings and peace - Mitch
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Posted by plantmover (from Newport News, VA) on December 25, 2007 at 4:20 PM:
Wonderful message--thank you for sharing! Warmest wishes for a blessed new year!
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Posted by Pagancat (from Gainesboro, TN) on December 25, 2007 at 4:50 PM:
As per usual, you absolutely rock.

x0x0x
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Posted by Dea (from Frederick, MD) on December 25, 2007 at 5:16 PM:
Wonderful article Shari - hope you are having a super day!

...
Posted by Islandshari (from Kwajalein
(Marshall Islands)) on December 25, 2007 at 6:15 PM:
You have all brought tears to my eyes...I was so afraid of offending, and you have all accepted the article in the loving spirit with which I wrote it. Thank you so much for the kind words and warm wishes.

To quote some very wonderful men: "What a wonderful world!"

Peace and joy to you all!
Shari
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Posted by chickenrancher (from Nova, OH) on December 25, 2007 at 6:18 PM:
Thank you for the info! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!!

Megan
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Posted by carrielamont (from Milton, MA) on December 25, 2007 at 6:42 PM:
FANTASTIC Shari, how could you offend? A perfect message for today. We sang from It Came Upon A Midnight Clear in church last night, "Oh ye, beneath life's crushing load" and I thought, yup, that's me. Or my husband. Or any one of a dozen people I could name here. But we don't let it crush us, for whatever reason, we're able to keep going, we know the sun will return and 'come out tomorrow', that we're past the longest night on the trip back toward spring and I have definitely had too much chocolate and not enough sleep.

Well, I need a nap, obviously! But thank you, Shari, for that multicultural trip through the holidays. (I think I should brush my teeth, too, or maybe just eat one tiny little more chocolate.)

xxxxx, Carrie
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Posted by Islandshari (from Kwajalein
(Marshall Islands)) on December 25, 2007 at 6:57 PM:
I hear ya Carrie....too much chocolate! But then my family keeps telling me I nuts when I say things like that...to them there is no such thing! Pass the Christmas cookies, would ya?
...
Posted by adinamiti (from Bucuresti
(Romania)) on December 25, 2007 at 7:42 PM:
Shari, you are such a good writer and I love the subject! You could not offend at all, the article has such a sweet tone ! I was also amased by the fact that they have to take care not to offend anyone about their religious celebrations in US.
We have a lot of nationalities in Romania too and we are getting along, like you said.
Thank you for such a wonderful lecture!
Merry Christmas everyone!
Adina
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Posted by Islandshari (from Kwajalein
(Marshall Islands)) on December 25, 2007 at 7:46 PM:
Adina, I'm so glad you enjoyed the article. It is truly a gift to be part of DG where we get to converse with so many people from so many different parts of the world! Proof every day that peace and friendship are more than possible...they are present!!!
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Posted by Marcy_1 (from New Madison, OH) on December 25, 2007 at 8:17 PM:
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays Shari. I really enjoyed reading your article. Thank you!
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Posted by Hyblaean (from Niles, IL) on December 25, 2007 at 10:06 PM:
"But if you look around you, at the faces you can see on the street, at your loved ones, at the bounty from your gardens, at the promise of the Spring, you will see that each moment of each day gives us myriad reasons to celebrate. Let us celebrate together, and share the joy."

Absolutely :) another great article
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Posted by JaxFlaGardener (from Jacksonville, FL) on December 26, 2007 at 12:43 PM:
Thanks for a inspirational view of the many holidays celebrated at this time of year. It would be wonderful to be able to travel around the world and partake of them all, at least once (I bet the variety of food would be great!)

Jeremy
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Posted by Pagancat (from Gainesboro, TN) on December 26, 2007 at 1:37 PM:
Oooo - great idea....
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Posted by LarryR (from South Amana, IA) on December 26, 2007 at 3:13 PM:
Wonderful article, Shari. There is a lot to be said about traveling to and living in many different parts of the world. It provides a perspective that is truly enviable. You are proof positive of that! Frohe Weihnacht und ein glückliches Neues Jahr! Larry
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Posted by carrielamont (from Milton, MA) on December 26, 2007 at 3:24 PM:
Larry! How do you get your computer to do umlauts? xx, Carrie
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Posted by LouC (from Desoto, TX) on December 26, 2007 at 4:37 PM:
Interesting thread...

[HYPERLINK@davesgarden.com]
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Posted by LarryR (from South Amana, IA) on December 26, 2007 at 5:16 PM:
I'll send you a D-Mail, Carrie.
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