I was reading through my RSS feeds today and came across Missive Maven's post about holiday cards. If you haven't taken a look, I recommend that you do. =)
Sometimes people have very good intentions when sending out holiday greetings, but they may not realize that the people they send to do not celebrate the same holidays. This got me thinking that when the time comes (probably last minute) I would like to know who to send cards out to. There are a few of you that I am pretty sure celebrate. But then again, I do not ever (that I can recall) discuss religion with any of my penpals. And then again..I am not sure that religion has anything to do with whether someone decides to celebrate.
SO. Now I am curious..do you celebrate any holidays? If so, which ones? I will be taking note so I do not offend anyone. =)
I celebrate everything -- life is short!
ReplyDeleteI agree!! I will put you on my "Holidays a-ok List"! =)
ReplyDeleteI love the holidays! How about you?
ReplyDeleteI celebrate them all!!
ReplyDeleteI love holidays, but I am no longer religious. Anyway, holidays are awesome and I love hearing about the celebrations of different cultures. I live in a very Jewish neighborhood and there are quite a few tents/booths set up outside for Sukkot. It sounds like fun to me. :-)
ReplyDeleteHallo Misty! :)
ReplyDeleteNot to worry, Autumn is the tipping stone season that starts to ring in my top three holidays for the entire year: Halloween/Ole Hallow's Eve/The Day of the Dead/All Saint's Day; Thanksgiving/Harvest; & Christmas/Winter Soltice/Three Kings. Traditionally, we've always celebrated Halloween, Thanksgiving & Christmas but as the years have progressed I've become interested in the others that are attached or nearby to the mainstays.
I've always taken a chance on sending Christmas cards to my pen pals... I've done that since I first started over 20+ years ago. Ironically, its only within the last decade people have been more in my face about it... which is why I grow nervous each year... however, I've decided, its a holiday I personally celebrate and if I cannot share it with a friend then what is the point!? Of course, I have never sent out Christmas cards that are religiously bent, as I'm just not that way... I have faith but I don't wear it on my sleeve. Therefore I never understood the fuss!? I celebrate Christmas in a very broad spectrum when writing my friends so I personally find it odd/offensive is someone writes me back in New Year and says that was horrid or don't do that again. Usually those friendships die right then and there. I mean, seriously!? IF you cannot spread peace, goodwill, and happiness in Winter what can you do the rest of the year through!?
Especially since I've always written about home, family, hearth, love, peace, happiness, good health and wellness and things of that nature... leaving what Christmas means to each of us open to interpretation.
If I find out a friend celebrate's a different holiday completely I amend the next year's card, but again, those friends NEVER take offense and heartily accept the card I sent for the reasons I've stated as to why I gave it in the first place! :)
You'd be surprised in the last 3 years how many so-called friends I lost at Christmastime! And, all for general "Happy Holidays" type greetings or it said Happy Christmas but was focusing on being together with family and friends. Sighs.
Its an upside down world.
Your sunshine friend.
PS: The only bit I agree with on the level of Missive Maven is if you intentionally sent a very religious card bent towards your own beliefs and left out leeway for someone elses' without prior knowledge of where they stand. I stand on the ledger that a card of friendship and goodwill should never be taken offensively.
Christmas has now become my acid test for friendships. Those who are with me past the holidays I know are my true blue friends. Those that are not, were not meant to be. Don't ever be afraid to be who you are and give of your heart.
Sending and receiving Christmas & New Years cards is one my favorite things about the coming holiday season. Some old friends just aren't letter writers so it's nice to get a card from them at Christmas.
ReplyDeleteBut if they start sending Facebook or email messages, that will be a different matter. My brother-in-law claims he's going to start sending e-cards which will probably end up in our spam filter & even if I rescue it, it's hardly like I'd print it out & display it in the house. :-/ Bleh to that idea.
I'll put it out there. Not religious, but I love the pretty designs and themes of holiday cards. Plus I have found fun ways to recycle them, so feel free if the mood stikes you ! )
ReplyDeleteWe celebrate Christmas in this household. I have a small group of old friends that we always send cards to and they do in turn. I usually send a religious themed card since I don't celebrate the birth of Santa but sometimes I find a card that is just beautiful. It just depends on my mood. I'm happy to get any kind of card though. It's always nice to get mail.
ReplyDeleteBeing the bargain hunter that I am, I often buy next years cards at the end of the season. Since I'm always doing things at the last minute I at least have my cards. Now I just have to make sure I get them mailed on time! LOL.
We celebrate the seven biblical feasts... starting in the spring with Pesach (Passover) and ending with Sukkot (the Feast of Booths). Our last feast of the year is now over...sigh! But I am already thinking ahead to Spring! I don't send "holiday" cards, since it is difficult to know which holidays apply. But I usually do send out seasonal cards celebrating and highlighting what I love from each season. However, if I receive a card from someone for a holiday that I don't observe, I enjoy the thought the person was sending my way and appreciate the their efforts.
ReplyDeleteI send cards to share my joy and celebrations to people of all faiths. I would never be offended if someone sent me a card in return, be it for Eid, to say Felice Navidad, Shalom, Happy Kwanzaa, or whatever. It's one way to learn about other cultures, religions, customs, etc. It could work in schools, too, instead of getting rid of Christmas or making concelebrants feel left out. So, please, include me in your celebrations with a card, a note, or prayers. When I had to deal with thyroid cancer, I asked for prayers from everyone, but drew the line at voodoo. :) I'm here today. :D
ReplyDeleteVery good idea Misty.
Wow. Guess I should have read the comments before posting, but as usual, I dive right in. Sorry, but in this instance I'm glad. :) I cannot imagine being uptight about what someone else believes in. It's a bit like disliking someone for their gender, hair eye and skin color, or maybe someone loves romance novels and you're into history. My voodoo comments were said with tongue in cheek. Please, no voodoo dolls though. They will just be added with my other dolls, and they might not get along.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, looks like most letter writing lovers are of the open mind-open heart variety. I knew I was in good company. :)
I thought it was a good idea to see who would appreciate a card this holiday season (I guess I was right). I never want to offend or make someone uncomfortable so I though...why not ask in advance?
ReplyDeleteLimner- You were already on my holiday card list. =)
Limner -
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure if your second comment was in reference to my comment, but it felt like it might have been. I simply wanted to say, that you worded it a bit better than I could come up with myself! :) It has felt like that... like we're somehow not supposed to share all the pieces of who we are because of our differences, no matter what those differences might entail.
I was going to email you but its not listed on your blog. I'll simply drop a note into the post to you instead to thank you! :)
(Misty's sunshine friend)
I don't celebrate Christmas, or any religious holiday. I do, however, love Halloween as the costume-y/candy festival it has become in the US and I celebrate my own end of year gift-giving gala called Giftmas. I do enjoy New Year cards, too. And sometimes make them to send to penfriends. I sometimes even buy Christmas cards because they often feature cats or cardinals (the bird, not the guys in hats) and I like those two motifs. I just alter the cards to fit my needs.
ReplyDeleteI am an atheist but I celebrate Christmas and Easter because part of my family is Catholic and most of all it's my country's tradition. We have some special traditions connected with these holidays and I always want to introduce them to my friends and send them Christmas waffles. They're a religious thing, I'm an atheist but I still think it a nice thing to wish someone some nice time and share the waffles:) I wouldn't send someone a card if a person would feel offended about it (if I was warned about it earlier) of course but generally I think everyone sends cards with best intentions and I am open to any religion's cards really.
ReplyDeletePostmuse- I love your idea of giftmas!!
ReplyDeleteGot that Swing- That is interesting that you have Christmas Waffles. Are they like the waffles we can get here in the states. I am highly intrigued.
This post has turned out to be a great one because I am learning all about different traditions that people have!