Generic Holidays?

Every year it’s the same thing. Parents trying to prevent the celebration of Halloween, or trying to keep Christmas from coming like some twisted followers of the Grinch.

I’m really tired of hearing that Halloween is some affront to Christianity when if fact it was the one God following people that started “All Saints Day” from which Halloween eventually sprang forth (see my article entitled “Halloween a Religious Holiday?” found on this website).

Just as equally stupid are the folks trying to have things like Christmas trees removed in various venues and going out of their way to not acknowledge some of our more popular holidays.

We need to declare a few holidays as religious exempt. The two that come to mind are the two I just mentioned, with the addition of Thanksgiving and possibly Easter thrown in for good measure.

Does this mean that certain religious cults cannot still claim these holidays for their own twisted agenda? No, I still stand by your freedom to believe and act as silly as you want.

I just want some holidays to become more generic to the masses in the United States, so everyone can enjoy these holidays without the fear that they are doing something wrong.

Let’s go down the list of holidays that currently cause conflict in our society quickly and see what the heck I mean. Forget about what you now believe about these days, and let’s reshape them into what they really are currently about. We’ll start with Halloween since it’s coming up first.

Halloween – Night to dress up in costumes, act crazy, have parties, and eat junk food. It’s about things that go bump in the night, and being scared. It’s a fun night that allows us to let ourselves go, and perhaps live in an alternate reality for just one night. You can dress up as a nun, witch, soldier, or any other thing you’d like without any recourse. For one night, it’s okay to pretend to be something else, or to make fun of someone else based on a costume.

Thanksgiving – On this day we are reminded what we should be thankful for. Perhaps we should also turn some attention to those less fortunate then ourselves. It is a day to eat turkey and other great food! It is a time to meet with family members, and gather to catch up with each other and to watch football.

Christmas – A winter day that many of us use to remember our immediate families. We gather to exchange gifts, have a good family time eating great food, going sledding, or doing many other family fun things. This day should stand for bringing good will to everyone on the Earth. Peace, love and joy are the underlying themes for this holiday.

Easter – Another family day to gather and celebrate the Spring. This is a great time to celebrate the sunshine and life by coloring eggs, going on a picnic and having Easter egg hunts.

Now you see, there is no need to pollute these days with specific religious overtones.

All costumes on Halloween would be accepted no matter how they looked. Christmas trees, wreaths, snowmen and Santa Clause will be accepted anywhere. The Easter Bunny will never be banned, and Pilgrims can still be shown having dinner with Native Americans.

For those of you who are of the religious mindset, there is no reason why you cannot continue your confused and distorted view of these holidays and celebrate them how you have always chosen. You would just no longer have the right to ridicule others that do not want to celebrate them the way you do.

Anything that is of a specific religious symbol in nature, such as a cross, manager scene, pentagram, etc… must still be left to places like the lawn of the church or a home.

By creating generic holidays that are acceptable to everyone, Jewish kids can finally enjoy a Christmas tree, wacky folks can wear wild costumes one day a year, and we can all hug the person in the big furry Easter Bunny suit without worrying how this will reflect on our religious beliefs.

So if you’re more worried about political correctness then having a great time and enjoying a customary holiday season, lock yourself in your home and shut the heck up. We don’t want to hear your whining about how offended you are with the Christmas decorations at your kid’s school.

Happy Holidays!