No, I have not suddenly become politically correct. But since in my view of the world a bunch of my favorite days occur in this time the title would have had to be insanely long to cover them all, and so the diminutive salutation welcomes you to these thoughts.
So: Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all!
Disclaimer: I may not acknowledge all holidays in the way or for the same reasons that they were created. Perhaps like most people, the special feeling about a given holiday is different than the original or commonly accepted reasoning. And that is OK. So please do not chastise me for not having the same interpretation as you do, nor for not trying to find some way to cast a gloomy miasma around these special days. Just as I try not to overthink every little situation, which in the past has resulted in a ridiculous number of "worst case" fears instead of "most likely" expectations, it is best to see the good and accept that in a given holiday as well as whatever bad there may be.
It starts with Columbus Day, kind of a prelude to the main event if you will. Now I have never considered Columbus Day a great holiday. I know that he was in many ways not a nice man, perhaps even in his own day he may have been thought of as doing wrong in some ways. On the other hand he did have some admirable qualities, including bravery and persistence, that are undeniable and that many who criticize Columbus would be better off to emulate. But it is not about the name of the day that I have always liked it. No, rather it is because it was a day off! Throughout my Air Force career I worked hard. At my first assignment in Mt Home the first few months were easy, but when things kicked off I put in a lot of 10 to 12 hour days and 16 hour efforts and weekends were not uncommon. While no assignment after had me putting in quite this much time, and I was never called on to deploy to the wars, I did feel that the job needed to come first unless there was a family emergency, to the point where most years I sacrificed several days of leave. So having a day when the office was not even open was a great time to spend with family. And since I retired I actually have even less time off as the government has made it impossible to be comfortable taking much time off with their drive to lower contract prices at the expense of the employees. Columbus Day marked the "almost end" of the post-summer "push hard" period, and reaching it meant that in another month or two the holiday season (starting with the non-holiday holiday Halloween, than Veterans Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years) was nearly there. Especially after Sharon and I married, and even more so after Kristi and Chip were born, this meant giving some good times back to those who brought and still bring me such great joy.
As hinted at above, the "real" holiday season, according to Greg, starts with Halloween, which is a favorite both because I had fun with it as a kid and after the dreaded growing up occurred. And yes it is not a real holiday, but it is so much fun that it counts as one. The fun was "everything" that we used to do for the big night. Preparing costumes, putting thin cloth over lights to darken the mood, carving pumpkins. Over the years I have had costumes ranging from a red coat when we lived in Wernau (a German town and they did not celebrate Halloween but we visited friends at Ramstein without a costume so the zipped up coat was the best I could do), to the very elaborate Black Blob that I made myself. The Black Blob was created after I had an inspiration while at my first Air Force assignment to cover 100% of me and "hover" without saying a word. It included a cape, and a lot of loose cloth to give the impression of a flowing, non-solid, shape. The eyes were covered with a gauze-like cloth. The impact was tremendous at the Officer Club party, where people tried to get me to talk, to make contact with me by exchanging looks, but could accomplish neither. Interestingly, some became a bit nervous, while some became a little more friendly. That costume, in whole or in parts, served for many years, including taking the kids out in the neighborhood through all the fun years of their growing into humans in our first Virginia neighborhood. The Blob would hover just beyond the comforting circles of light from yard lights while the kids and Sharon went to get the loot and say hi. Many home owners would make some comment on the nice costumes, and than be startled as their eyes told them there was Something Else in their yard. When walking house to house on the unlit cull de sac other families would realize that the kids and Sharon where not alone and sometimes react with startled expressions or responses. Quite fun. One of my favorite pictures features a completely at peace Kristi on her first Halloween being held by the Black Blob. Sharon and I were a bit worried that she might be afraid when first seeing said Blob, but she was never a bit afraid. I always felt it was a fun time for all who wanted to put on a costume and go outside to show their "real-hidden self" and thought that the kids liked it too. Unfortunately it turns out that one former child apparently did not like it and somehow learning that saddens me much more than it should have, but I guess not everyone likes the same things. Unfortunately, in the last few years my ability to spare the time and energy for these pursuits has gone as work takes up more time and my physical condition has worsened, so now I stay at home handing out candy without even carving the great pumpkins that used to be my hallmark; great since I have a skill at carving squash and would find misshapen ones and use the shape in the creation. Happily, Kristi and Sharon keep the spirit alive, with Chip having helped some before his studies and then job interrupted. The dogs, Bella the English Mastiff and Bebe the Mini Poodle both greet the ringing of the doorbell with their customary alarm barking, and sometimes Bella is outside, her massive presence perhaps adding a bit of excitement to trick-or-treaters and their parents alike.Such is what time does over time, and little do we suspect that this will happen when we are young.
Of course after Halloween Veteran's Day is only 11 days away. Commemorating the peace that settled over the battlefields of World War I on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918, and the millions who died fighting the "War to end all Wars" when what had been the costliest war in man's history was brought to a conclusion, the weary peoples failed to see that by trying to punish the losing powers that they were sealing the doom of the next generation to fight an even more horrendous war twenty years later. So the holiday is not one of joy, but rather somber reflection. But it is also time to spend with the family since it is a "real holiday", which as noted above is a good thing.
Next in line is Thanksgiving. A celebration of the Europeans coming to America, though many of the "everything the Europeans have done is evil" crowd do not like this special day either, I like it in part for the fact that as with pretty much everyone else in the US that we are much better off than if the European invasion had not occurred. Think about it. Would the Native Americans ever have reached the accomplishments that we have if they had remained the dominant culture? And yes, their people often do not share in the benefits of the modern America. But I think much of that is by choice. Since they choose to stay out of the mainstream life they choose to not benefit from it. And that is their right, although expecting to have both the benefits and to stay off the path that earns those benefits is illogical. Of course the USA has not always done good, and we should note that in order to learn from those evils and not do their like again, but overall for the most part we have been a force for good. Enough of this; simply note that I am most thankful that my Dad chose to raise us as Americans, not Native Americans. For me, Thanksgiving has meant a chance to take a few moments to be thankful for the Blessings that we have good lives, and for having a wonderful family. That and to enjoy the good food of course. Grandma of the House, Sharon's Mom, always used to make some of the food, and was a special part of our household. This year I missed her, looking over to "her" table where she chose to eat and Sharon and, if we had more than the household over, a few of the other people would join her, and feeling sadness that she was no longer with us in this life. The gathering of family and sometimes friends made this day special as well, though in recent years my declining ability to not get aggravated at little disruptions have kept me from wanting to bring in anyone who is not immediate family; perhaps I can recapture the old feelings of actually liking to be around people some day and can get this back. I hope so. Being me right now is not as fun as it used to be.
After a few weeks, where in most years work slows a bit and there are many festive get-togethers, is Christmas. Merry Christmas. Let me preface by saying that I did not grow up with a lot of religious input. I believe that my parents believed in God, and were Christians, but they were not overly religious. Thus they took the route that it is in belief and faith that we find salvation, rather than in displays of faith. And that is the way I believe as well. Perhaps a later post on religion will bring this into full focus, but for now I will say that I have enough personal and reported experiences which allow me to believe, and leave it there. So yes, Christmas has a religious overtone for me, and was never allowed to be all about presents and the secular aspects. My Dad's favorite Christmas music was Silent Night, and in this day I tend to be drawn most to the old favorites from times of faith that we are missing in this modern but not in all ways better time.
Of course a huge part of the Christmas spirit is the kid's whole Santa Clause and the presents experience. Much like Halloween, where some of my fondest memories go back to Kristi and Chip having, or appearing to have, a great time, many of my fondest Christmas memories revolve around their happiness and excitement as well. We took the kids to see Santa, and I even played Santa once at Kristi's skating rink when they were a bit older. For many years we really did a lot for Christmas, including making ornaments, setting up really nice trees, exterior and interior lights. The kids helped as they grew enough to not destroy ornaments, and now much of what we do is their work. We also had and have our family traditions, which I treasure. For example, the rule was that they could not open presents until Mom and Dad were awake. That way we did not miss the fun of watching them hopefully enjoy their gifts. Grandma always participated as well, sometimes joining us in the living room, sometimes sitting in her favorite chair in the kitchen nook, and whoever was handing out presents so each can be unwrapped while all give the recipient some attention would take hers to her. Good times with the family.
New Years closes the season down. Long ago I gave up drinking to much, and in the last few years neither Sharon nor I try to stay up late, but another day off is good, and it is fun to see some of the celebrations. Part of that fun is watching a lot of people go to extreme lengths supposedly to have fun but not looking like they will remember anything the next day. Schadenfreude is the German word that adequately describes this. New Years is also a time to try and reset our paths, to make a new start in doing things that we know we let slip in the last year. Not that that happens much, but I do think that I have been able to do this to some extent over the years. Perhaps in a few days I will have a success again?
The holidays in January and February are only noted as time off, because right after New Year the work ramps back up and stress follows that as the hitched wagon follows the horse. Still, days off are days off and the time spent at home is greatly valued.
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