Serious question, and one I'm sure gets asked every year...how do you guys deal with the social conventions that surround Christmas? 95% of the people, I know, celebrate Christmas and the other 5% celebrate things like Yule; Solstice; Hannukah; etc. What if you just don't care about all of the hype and commotion that leads up to this day? I'd love to hear some of your thoughts and insights on this.
ask for money. lol i look at it if its a pagan holiday about good will and peace ignore the so called christian holiday that stole it from the pagans.
I just ignore the religious aspect of the holiday and focus on the good stuff: food, presents, money, liquor and spiked eggnog, friends & family whether they are religious or not. When I'm forced to deal with the religious aspect of the season, I do say "happy holidays" to everyone whether they like it or not. Most Christians try to forcibly correct me and insist that I say to them Merry Christmas, but I just continue to say Happy Holidays to them and they go away.
I've been celebrating it as a mismash of holidays forever.... Originally the Christian one - than we added some Hanukkah for an inlaw.... than I had friends who were into Solstice...
Now for me it's just about seeing family and enjoying their company - a great excuse for us all to get together - which we seldom do as we get older and everyone lives in different States.
I do Christmas just because I love all the festivities! And I take solace in knowing that Christmas is merely a holiday stolen by the Christians from the Pagans. The tree, the lighting of lights, the gifting, even the praying, which in pagan times was hopes that the sun would return again. I don't go to church, I internally vomit when I read, "Jesus is the reason for the season," and I'm willing to smile at others' little comments about their religion. If that makes them happy, who am I to interfere with their fantasies?
I am from a ski resort/tourism community. And other than the early years of our daughter's childhood, I chose to work every Christmas. Just another day for me, for the most part. But the kids ... People were so grateful I was willing to take their shift so they could be with family and it was no skin off our noses!