I think whoever came up with the idea of holidays was a genius!
Holidays are a great way to take a break from work and either enjoy some leisure time or get out and party. However, employers are probably not real crazy about shutting down business and giving everyone a couple of days off work for no reason. So, kudos to the people who came up with reasons for employers to do just that.
Holidays are also a good way to relieve the humdrum and boredom of everyday life. It's fun to prepare, decorate the house, and dress up for a special occasion. It's fun to get together with family and friends, pig out; kick up your heels, and swap stories.
People have been doing it for centuries. We can read about festivities that have taken place in ancient Greece and Rome that celebrated the changing of the seasons. Indigenous people on our continent did the same before our arrival.
But, sometimes, celebrating the rotation of the holidays can bring on a humdrumness of its own. In fact, after taking part in the succession of memorial events. I have come to no longer, necessarily, look forward to them.
You see, I decorate the house for the seasons—mostly, just by changing the artificial flowers in the vases sitting around the stands in the house. There are red carnations for January and February; shamrocks for March; dogwoods and daffodils for spring; red, white, and blue roses for summer; orange and yellow mums and sunflowers for fall; and red and white poinsettias for December. I get tired of getting into the cupboards to get the current flowers out and putting the no-longer-appropriate ones away. And yet, I do it. I must admit that it gives the house and my spirits a lift.
As this Christmas season approached, I told myself I was going to keep this one low-key. I would just change the flowers and be done with it. However, the artificial tree was still decorated from last year. All I had to do was get it out of the cupboard where I had kept it covered with a plastic bag and put it in the room.
How could we celebrate Christmas without a display of the nativity? So, I got out the ceramic set my children had pooled their money to buy me when they were teenagers. I simply had to set out the wooden one that Sweetheart made me a couple of years ago. And, I couldn't forget the little Holy Family nestled inside the glass teardrop that Father Mark gave me when I was the religious education coordinator at the church.
Before I knew it, the house was looking festive, indeed.
And then there was shopping with a friend on Small Business Saturday: attending a Christmas pageant at church; enjoying a Christmas concert at another church; Breakfast in Bethlehem, Christmas parties at the homes of friends, and family. Before I knew it, the boredom and malaise had turned into a full-blown celebration.
When it comes to having a reason to celebrate, what could be better than giving praise and honor to the One Who gave us everything? There's nothing boring about that.
Dorothy is the author of two books—“Miles and Miracles” and “Getting It All Together “. You can purchase a book or send a comment by emailing her at dorothybutzknight@gmail.com