I’m looking forward to Christmas
It’s coming up you know! And I for one am already getting excited. The first little treat that comes my way – I can hardly stand the wait – is egg nog! Mmm… it’s so deliciously bad for me, but I just can’t resist. And as the snow starts setting in for winter, it gets so cozy inside. Something about the winter just makes you want to eat fresh cookies and sit under a big blanket watching the snow fall. Then you have those crisp mornings when the new snow came the night before, and the whole world seems to be pristine and untouched – the snow dampens the sound and makes it feel so still, so serene.
And as it gets closer to December 25th, the decorations start coming out and the city lights up with festive colors and lights. It’s hard to beat a night with your loved ones, driving around with hot chocolate and snacks, looking at lights and decorations and savoring the time together. It builds up to Christmas day, and for me that’s a wonderful family and friends celebration. We give out gifts; we drink, eat and laugh. The stress of the rest of the year doesn’t matter for a day. I look forward to seeing people I don’t see often enough, sharing gifts and seeing their reaction to what I pick out for them. I will forget about health food for a day and eat whatever tastes good. I’ll drink some great wine, maybe take a nap by a crackling fire, and for a day I get to really relax. “Christ”mas or not, I can’t wait for this season to come.
Sometimes when people shed a religion, they’re eager to also cast off any ties to it. It may be a symbolic act for them, rejecting the practices all together. That’s fine, if it’s meaningful for you, but I have no problem keeping some holiday traditions. I don’t feel like it’s anything hypocritical, and doesn’t mean anything about my belief system. Deep down, I know that I enjoy lots of the aspects of Christmas (which has grown very far from celebrating the birth of Jesus, much to the chagrin of many Christians), and I know that a day (or season) of celebration is a great way to recharge for the coming year, and reflect on the past one. I don’t go to church; I don’t put an angel on the top of my tree. But it’s also not necessary to hoist a copy of Origin of Species up there just to make a stand. The holiday, for me, has nothing to do with religion or a belief system, and forcing that upon it is just plain silly. If I wanted to make a stand, I’d make up some other holiday and celebrate that – but then it wouldn’t be celebrating a holiday, it would be making a show of my beliefs.
In fact, I think the secular celebration of Christmas is a great thing. Some holidays commemorate special events, and some are purely religious. But there’s nothing wrong with celebration for its own sake. I don’t have to deprive myself of things that I truly enjoy to be comfortable with my beliefs. Come on, it’s Christmas… just have a good time!
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You go girl! Enjoy what you enjoy and don’t let anyone stop you. Happy Holy Days!
Oops… not a girl. Thanks for the support though :)
Nothing you’ve described has anything to do with religion. Just a party with a cheezy (but fun)winter-ish theme and certain types of decorations and certain types of food.
If you have kids someday are you going to string them along with the whole Santa Claus thing?
Nope, no religion necessary. Really, most American families need only remove the obligation to sit in church for an hour that day, and theirs won’t be religious either. I just happen to be comfortable admitting that to myself where they may not be. It’s funny, I don’t normally get all cheesy and nostalgic, but I just like Christmas a lot. (And apparently come off somewhat feminine?)
Personally, I’ve never had too much of a problem with the whole Santa thing. I’ve seen some people write about it like it’s a huge lie to your kids and on a level with religious indoctrination and “You shouldn’t manipulate them like that.” Well, I don’t think it has to be like that. Let them have this imaginary guy that watches your every action and brings toys to all the kids of the world in a night. You can only answer their questions for so long until they see through it. It may actually turn into a good lesson about finding your own answers when someone gives you a fantastical story like that. The parallels with how some religions (arguably) manipulate and control people are almost inescapable. But for me it wouldn’t be about the lesson. It seems like kids have a good time with the Santa thing, and all their friends will be excited – I don’t see a pressing reason to take that away.
Yeah, I cannot wait for the holidays to roll around this year. Pumpkin pie and turkey, but alas, I cannot celebrate thanksgiving properly this year so I am going to have to default to American Thanksgiving. Oi. And this will be the first time EVER that I have not spent the holidays without anyone that cares for me since I have my brand new wife. ^_^
I’m with you on the excitement of Christmas. I love the holiday (I get the post-Christmas blues – that’s how much I love it), and I love spending it with my overtly religious family. Despite the fact that they are very religious, Christmas has never been a sacred holiday in my family. Yes, my mother puts up her angel tree topper, and yes, we all go around singing religious Christmas carols while we bake and decorate (even I do! Just because I’m an atheist doesn’t mean I can’t enjoy the music I grew up with, even if that music has a religious message. My two favorite Christmas songs are both religious, as a matter of fact), and yes, my mother has her Christmas nativity decorations around the house, but Christmas itself has always been more about enjoying time with the family, not about praising some baby born in a barn. Despite their firm faith, my family rarely went to church anyway, so church on Christmas wasn’t something we did (except when visiting my grandparents up in Indiana). Since I have come out as an atheist, Christmas has never been awkward because, to us, it’s more about family, food, and… more food.
I had a feeling that I wasn’t alone in feeling this way. I know there are some religious people that get kind of huffy about “taking Christ out of Christmas”, and they probably don’t like it. But, hey, what are they going to do? We just like the holiday :)
I didn’t even know Christmas was a celebration of jesus until I was 12. I think Christmas is a great tradition, and an increasingly secular one at that. Some of my fondest childhood memories are from a stinking hot Australian Christmas day around the pool. Never have I associated god with it.
I think its great that godless people can celebrate Christmas, not believing in god shouldn’t affect your social life or exclude you from such great events as Christmas or Easter.