Season’s Greetings

Published by Karim | Filed under Uncategorized

I originally began writing this post as a sort of greeting card to my readers (insert the sound of crickets chirping here).

But after writing the usual Hallmark-style intro, and reminiscing about the year that was, I realized that I wasn’t really buying my kitschy holiday message! So I deleted it and thought that the following would be more appropriate.

We’ve just had our first snowfall and the holidays seem to be around the corner; I suspect that people are more excited about some time off than they are about celebrating the marketing-spectacle that some call Christmas. Montrealers seem to be the same as usual; drivers are annoyed, impatient and often oblivious to pedestrians, pedestrians are rude, aggressive and self-absorbed, and cyclists are…well, they’re still riding their bikes at -17 C and 28 cm of snow on the ground! So, all in all, it’s business as usual. Which got me thinking…why do we make such a big deal about “the holidays”?

The word “holiday” comes from “Holy day”. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “holiday” as: a day set aside for special religious observance; a day on which one is exempt from work - specifically: a day marked by a general suspension of work in commemoration of an event. But as we all know, very few people consider themselves to be that religious, yet no one passes up a chance to take a long week-end in the name of religion. So, what is expected during these holy days?

Well, if you truly are religious, you probably believe in remembering, honouring and celebrating an important event in your religion’s history, usually through a series of traditional acts and rituals (including prayer, meals, etc.). You probably attend religious celebrations (because you want to); and I suspect that you truly appreciate the meaning of “the joy of the season”. I am quite sure my parents fall into this category.

If you’re not overly religious (but feel you need to be, especially around the holidays), you probably do a bunch of selfless things in the name of religion – you volunteer, donate to charity, give a bunch of gifts to people you haven’t seen in…well, nearly a year. You are concerned about doing the right thing and somehow feel obliged to do everything, see everyone, and cram a whole year’s worth of “love” into 5 days (or 12 days if you believe the Christmas carol). The result; stress, aggravation, and a general disdain for the holiday season! Much to my mother’s chagrin, I’m pretty sure that I’m in this group.

If you are not that religious and do not feel that you need to prove to others that you are a wonderful person, you probably just take the holidays as time off that should be spent relaxing and being merry (aka, eating and drinking a bit too much). You don’t worry about who to invite or who will invite you; you are not at all preoccupied with “that perfect, special meal” that you are going to have to create from scratch for the 19 people coming over next week; you treat yourself and your family to nice gifts (because everything is on special, and who doesn’t like a bargain!) and you simply take advantage of this time off to do the things you did not have time to do since your summer holidays. My friend Stan (ok, his name isn’t actually Stan…but that’s not the point), falls into this category. During the winter (Christmas) holiday, he gives his employees a few extra days off; he usually takes a trip somewhere warm, he doesn’t invite anyone over, and he buys his family a new “toy” that they can all enjoy (this year it’s a Wii and a plasma TV). I think I envy Stan; he is tanned and smiling every January; he seems happy to be back at work after the holidays (you’ll never hear him say, “I think I need a holiday to recover from my holiday!”); and regardless of his religious views, he is a pretty decent guy to everyone he meets.

So whether you are like my parents, like me, or like Stan, I wish you a very safe and happy holiday season…regardless of how you decide to spend it!

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