Merry Happy Holiday of your choosing. Or not

I grew up in a religious tradition that didn't believe in Christmas. Oh don't get me wrong, my family and I exchanged gifts every year, we even put up a tree when I was a small child (at my mother's insistence, but even that didn't last too long), but it was made quite clear from early on that we were in no way celebrating Jesus' birth. You see that would be wrong.

Wrong, you ask? Why would celebrating the birth of Christ be wrong?

Well, the religious group I was reared in believed since Christ never explicitly asked us celebrate his birth as a religious holiday, if you chose to do so you would be participating in "unauthorized worship" of God; And we all remember what happened to Nadab and Abihu when they offered unauthorized fire (worship) to God, right?
What Christ DID ask us to remember, they argued, was his death and resurrection, and the way to do that was through Communion, not some trite holiday that Christ never even instituted. Combine all of that with the pagan origins of Christmas* and the Jeremiah 10:2-4 passage that obviously condemned Christmas trees, and what you had was an airtight case against Christmas.

So instead of saying "Merry Christmas", I was taught to say "Happy Holidays", not to give credence to any other religious celebration mind you, but to declare that we were not celebrating Christmas.

When searching for wrapping paper, we had to be sure to not pick anything that was overtly religious, and you didn't dare buy anything with a Santa Claus on it. Oh, and by the way, we weren't buying Christmas presents, we were buy presents for the holidays.

But there was a problem.

I LOVED CHRISTMAS. I still do.

Christmas trees whether big or small, ornate or simple, I adore them.
Nothing thrills me more than to hear a beautiful choir or soloist sing Silent Night, Joy to the World, or Oh Holy Night.
Christmas Lights: LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THEM. I used to beg my parents to take the long way home so that I could ooh and ahh at all of the elaborate decorations.
And even though my church never had a Candlelight Christmas Eve service, when I had the chance to watch them on TV, I thought they were absolutely beautiful.
Of course as a child I enjoyed waking up to presents, but honestly that was just the icing on an already delicious cake.

Over the years I began to notice a shift during the Christmas season. To be fair, I can't say that there was a definite change of mindset, it may be that I simply became more aware of what was going on, but people seemed to focus a little less on the birth of Christ (for those that celebrated it religiously), and more on presents. Instead of candlelight services being shown on television, there seemed to be more and more commercials advertising some super sale of the week.

And then the biggie:

People began to say "Happy Holidays", in an attempt to acknowledge other religious holidays *GASP*

It was official. The war had begun.

Nowadays it's commonplace to hear that we Christians should be on a mission to "take back Christmas". That instead of saying "Happy Holidays" to the sales clerk, you should look him or her square in the eye and say "Merry Christmas. Jesus loves you". And I have read many a blog post, email, leaflet, you name it, reminding me that "Jesus is the reason for the season."


Can I tell you a something? It's just between us right?


I really don't think Jesus gives a rat's you-know-what about whether we choose to celebrate his birth on December 25th.


There, I said it.


As much as I love Christmas and decided as an adult to take time to reflect on Jesus' birth, life, and death, I don't think he cares one way or another.
And while I may have issues with many aspects of my religious upbringing, it's true: Jesus never told us that we needed to celebrate his birth, so if you choose not to do so, I think that's perfectly acceptable.

What I DO believe matters each day of the year, not just during the holiday season, is that we all strive to be joyful, compassionate, and loving people.

So it is with that spirit that I say to anyone reading this

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays

*note: If you have never heard of the pagan origins of Christmas and are interested, feel free to google that phrase for details. To be frank, I'm just not interested in linking to it.

Mel's Musings (and Rants)

It's that time again...

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Dear generic pack and play manufacturer,

I thank you for your nifty creation. It has served my family quite well, as we use it as a bed for my son while traveling. You have saved my husband and me countless beatings by my son's flailing limbs in the middle of the night.
I do, however, have a suggestion for improvement. The mattress for this delightful contraption makes a rustling noise whenever my kid changes positions. For the normal child this isn't a problem, but when you have a child that flops around like a bat out of you-know-where, this does not create an ideal sleeping experience. In fact, it causes said child to wake up earlier than normal since the sound of *crinkle, crinkle, crinkle* wakes him from his peaceful slumber. Not good. A tired toddler, equals a cranky toddler who gives you the evil eye because he was awakened before he was ready .
Please consider making future mattresses out of a less noisy material. The life you save may be your own.

Signed,

Sleeping with one eye open

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Why is it now popular to make H's silent in the words that begin with the letter? Instead of Huge, it's Yooge; Instead of Houston, TX, it's Yooston, TX; And the one that makes me want to pull my hair out strand by strand, instead of Human, it's Yooman. Hey you, silent H guy! Not pronouncing the letter H doesn't make you sound smart, it makes you sound silly. Oh, and you can save sending me a link to an online dictionary giving alternate pronunciations to prove these are valid. These are the same people that added the word bling to the dictionary. BLING! Ugh, idiocracy has begun.

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While we are talking about language, has anyone else noticed that, beginning at the height of election season and continuing through now, everyone has started using the word fundamentally more often? During the debates both Obama and McCain (although I noticed it with Obama more often) would pinpoint a particular issue and then describe how they were "fundamentally different" from their opponent. Now you hear the word fundamentally everywhere:
"This is how the Zone diet is fundamentally different from Atkins", "This is how satellite is fundamentally different from cable", "This is how salmon is fundamentally different from tuna ."

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I know it's a little early, but say it with me: Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day, Valentine's day, NOT Valentime's day. There's no M in the word people. Every year, in early February, I hear good, law abiding, tax paying citizens slash the second N and replace it with a M. I'm sure the N doesn't appreciate it. What did the N ever do to you to warrant this behavior?
Don't worry, now that I've pointed out this bold misuse of the letter M, you'll notice it too. You'll notice it just like you notice nails on a chalkboard.

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While we're on the subject, why is Valentine's day even a holiday? I know I'm a woman and I'm supposed to love Valentine's day, but, not so much. It's too forced.
Every year people try to find some new, unique, and outlandish way to show their love on that particular day, and they do it simply because the media told them to.
I'm all for romance, and I won't turn down a date with my hubby, even if it is on February 14th, but really, it's just another day. Dan and I have spent several Valentine's days doing absolutely nothing. I don't understand why some people get upset when their significant other doesn't do anything "special" on February 14th. You'll win more points with me by doing something romantic, just because you feel like it, one of the other 364 days of the year. This is why my husband is perfect for me. Most men would think Valentines day would be the perfect day to propose, but not my Dan.
Oh, what's that? You're asking me the date Dan proposed? February 15th. *Blissful Sigh* He sooo gets me.

Mel's Musings (and Rants)

There have been many times I've had random thoughts pop into my head and I want to post about them, but it doesn't really warrant a full post. I've decided to clump all these thoughts together and put them in a single post (kind of like I did here). Get ready, something tells me this type of post won't be a one time occurrence :)

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Let's start with email etiquette, shall we? When forwarding an email that has been forwarded 1500 previous times, it really pays to take the extra seconds to delete all of the other emails listed in the body of the message. Yes, I'm lazy when it comes to email, and I can't tell you how many I've deleted simply because I got tired of scrolling. Don't judge me.

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I love most everything about the Christmas season: Cold weather, hot chocolate, fires in the fireplace, Christmas decorations and music, Christmas Eve church services and plays...yep, I love most everything, except Christmas shopping. Why do we have to go and ruin perfection by adding in the stress of gift giving (have I mentioned that I hate shopping)? Don't get me wrong, I love buying gifts for kids and seeing their little faces light up, but it's so much harder to buy for adults. Generally, when adults want or need something, they go out and buy it, so when Christmas comes around you have absolutely no idea what to buy them. This then creates a headache for everyone involved. I have an idea. NO GIFTS FOR ANYONE OVER THE AGE OF 18. Who's with me? Seriously, I'm too young to be this stressed out.

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Speaking of Christmas shopping, I have a general PSA. When driving around in the overly crowded parking lots, it actually helps to use the turn signals on your car. I know it's just the parking lot and not the "real road", but it helps the 15,000 other manic shoppers know where the heck you are going. Yes, I realize my OCD is showing.

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lit⋅er⋅al⋅ly [lit-er-uh-lee] –adverb

1.	in the literal or strict sense: What does the word mean literally?

2.	in a literal manner; word for word: to translate literally.

3.	actually; without exaggeration or inaccuracy: The city was literally destroyed.

4.	in effect; in substance; very nearly; virtually.

definition taken from dictionary.com

Nothing drives me crazier than to hear the word literally used incorrectly. I'm sure I use plenty of words incorrectly, and I'll string a fragment together like nobody's business, but for the love of all that is holy, can people please use this one word properly?

Correct: I went to Walmart Saturday, and I literally stood in line for 30 minutes to buy 2 items.

This statement is quite accurate, and without even a hint of exaggeration. I stood in line for 30 minutes to buy garland for our Christmas tree.

Incorrect: While waiting in line at Walmart, my head literally exploded.

Although I felt like my head would explode, I performed a thorough search of the floor, and I didn't find a single portion of my brain on the ground.

Is that clear? Good.

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Ian is 20 months old (17 months adjusted), and I think I'm beginning to get a glimpse into why the two's are so terrible. Here you have a small person, that has definite opinions, likes/dislikes, and desires, but doesn't have the vocabulary (nor do I have the gift of interpreting tongues) to express exactly what he wants. God help us.

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Speaking of Ian's age, I'll be so glad when he turns two years old. Why? So I can stop describing his age in freaking months! I've tried telling people how old Ian is in years, but for some reason if I say "My son is about 1 1/2 years old," people get this confused look on their face as if I've answered their question in a foreign language. So then I back track and say "He's 20 months old," and then the light bulb goes off above their head and all is right with the world.

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Whew! That felt great. I guess I'll go ahead and end things on this note. I should probably introduce my crazy in spurts instead of all at once.