I know this is going to be a touchy subject for many people. But this is my blog and my opinion only. I'm sure I will get many replies saying it means joyful day of Christ's birth. And then some will correct that and say, well it is the day we celebrate his birthday on the 25th but he wasn't actually born on this day. Some will say merry means happy so be happy its Christmas. And then there are some like me who will google it and you will find the following:
Used to express good wishes at Christmas time
Holiday greetings are a selection of greetings that are often spoken with good intentions to strangers, family, or friends, in nations around the world, during the months of December and January.
So I think its safe to say its intended to mean good wishes and good intentions to others. These words are used as a greeting to others and have been used for many years which in turn makes it a tradition.
Now, the English language and the USA recognises Christmas as a holiday.
Christmas or Christmas Day is a holiday observed generally on December 25 to commemorate the birth of Jesus, the central figure of Christianity.
Most companies also recognise this day as a holiday and will usually pay a person holiday pay.
So, why is it that so many people get upset when you say happy holidays? Because after all "happy holidays" has also been a tradition or greeting if you will for many years. Do you really think that people don't want to say Christmas because of Christ?
Well, my opinion is this:
I think there are some who probably choose not to celebrate Christmas because they don't want to recognise Christ. But I will not waste my time and energy on people who believe that mainly because I do not share that same belief. What I do want to say is I think we have given these people too much notice or attention to this very fact. When we immediately jump on somebody for not using the greeting you want them to use, then what is the whole point of the greeting anyway?
I use both greetings. If I am talking about Thanksgiving, Christmas and the New Year celebration as a whole, I say holidays. If I am talking about Christmas, I say Christmas. Just because I say holiday does not mean I am taking Christ out of Christmas. Both terms and greetings are used during this time of year so I really don't see the issue here. I felt I was attacked by several people when using the holiday greeting this year. Why must we behave in this manner? What happened to freedom of speech anyway? Hey, I'm a talkative person, so if there is ever a question about anything I say to you then just ask. But be ready for a lengthy reply. It is just who I am.
Some of us are old school people on here and I understand I might be one of them. But think about this logically for a minute. If you are using any one of these greetings, then you should say it with its intended meaning. Now we are back to good intentions and good wishes. How do you do this? Well...
First you must feel the joy in your heart. Joy meaning really feel happy and want to share it with others. Second, you approach in a way that is considered approachable by others. Third, check your tone of voice as it should have some uplifting tone to it. Lastly if you are wishing good intention greetings on someone then you should actually feel it and mean it! I mean come on really, some of you speak the words only because that is what you think people want to hear. But that works both ways too. I have had some people ask me how I am doing then when I proceed to tell them, they just walk off. It is just how society has become. But society as a whole, needs to make a change. PEOPLE MEAN WHAT YOU SAY AND SAY WHAT YOU MEAN. I'm sure the old saying, "if you can't say something nice, then just don't say anything" wouldn't work anymore in these times. However, maybe this one would: AND IF YOU CAN'T SAY SOMETHING NICE, THEN SEND AN EMAIL OR TEXT BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT. Yeah I like the sound of that one. Especially with that fabulous block feature we have on multimedia gadgets.
THE SUM OF WHY I WOULD WRITE ABOUT THIS ANYWAY IS:
This year has been a rough year for me and my family. I'll admit that due to my health issues I listened too carefully to what others were saying and how they were acting this year. And it was really hard for me to see any REAL people that were happy. And what I mean by real is look around, there is a lot of SUPERFICIAL happiness going around. It's not real people. FAKE you may call it. I mean, I believe in true happiness and I believe it comes within. But we are struggling to keep up with the fast pace so what you end up seeing isn't the real deal at all. It's the fakeness just to shut you up so they can be about their merry way. Listen, shopping was horrifying. Most people shop while talking on their cell phones. They run into you with their baskets. They pretend you are not even there. Steal your spot in line. Sigh at you and roll their eyes. I won't even mention the driving out there. All you have to do is look at people while they are driving. Most are NOT smiling I can tell you that much. Scowl looks, holding their cell phones, honking their horns and basically driving in their own worlds, not our world together. If you ask a person in a store for customer service you are inconveniencing them to say the least. You will most likely get a scowl look and the gracious words of "WHAT?" Not yes ma'am can I help you? What happened to those greetings in customer service? What year did all of this just cease to exist anyway? Are their really any happy people left? I see a lot of people making judgements on others and making a point to try to be right about everything. And if you disagree with them, then your ditched by them. There is no such thing as unconditional love anymore. Everything moves so fast that there is no time for second chances. We don't even have time for kids to learn anymore. They are forced to learn the first time around on everything or they are considered A.D.D. There is no patience for anyone anymore. The disabled are an inconvenience because they can't move fast enough. We can't seem to slow down to mourn the death of a loved one. What happened to all the listeners? Who is left to call on anymore? Everyone is too busy and their schedules are overwhelmed. No more shoulders to cry on because if you are not on a happy pill then most don't want you around, your considered negative when you are sad. We have become a world of numbness and stupidness(new word not in dictionary). We prefer to watch ignorance on television. The things that are funny to us today are actually what is poisoning our lives. The fact that we took "freedom" and turned it into "free from morals" is disgusting to me. We have commercialized everything about us, including Christmas. I can't tell you how many times I said Merry Christmas and got back nothing. There is a lot of people who will say it back but their tone of voice is off. So they felt like they had to say it. Why do we do this? Whats wrong with us?
Anyway, just a pondering thought I felt the need to express. I encourage each and everyone of you to set down and take some time and use that brain you have to really think about what change you need to make this year. Remember if you want to see change in the world, you have to be that change. There are not many leaders left, just sheep. So, you can make a stand for the better good starting in 2011. I know I would sure like to see it and I plan to make a change myself. Folks, we are all guilty to some of this and you know it. Lets do something about it. Heres what we need to do:
Bring customer service back; Friends to actually be a friend again; Bring "I'm sorry" back in your vocabulary; Tell your kids you love them and ask what you can do for them; Re prioritise your priorities; Stop using that cell phone while you are tasking a car or shopping basket or talking to a person thats standing in front of you; Take time out to make supper for your family; Allow all emotions but show a little less of your anger; Help those in need of your help; LISTEN to others; support your family (and support means be there for them, listen, cry with them, laugh with them)allow people to speak freely then voice your opinion when asked; stop saying you don't want to be in the middle and jump right in if you can fix something; be stronger; enjoy Gods daily gifts; be able to see your gifts and actually say thank you and I could go on and on but most of all...be happy and remember you don't have to be right. We are only human and we will make mistakes. There is no need to judge me for if you are doing what your supposed to be doing in this life, then there is no time to judge...only love others....cause love is all anyway. HAPPY NEW YEAR
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