No more blindly celebrating holidays

Well, Morgan at "The Token Hippie" reminded me that I wanted to talk about holiday's, and why I stopped "celebrating" them so many years ago.

My earliest memory of giving up on holiday things was about 15 years ago when I read about the origins of the famed christmas tree. I considered it cruel and unjust for a beautiful tree to be cut off from its roots, denied water and sunlight for some unknown amount of time, then to be hauled outside and tossed to the gutter, no thanks. Then I find out that this little item had zip to do with Jesus, when I typed in "origins of the christmas tree" in google, BOY OH BOY did I get an eye opener.

I thought I knew the origins of christmas, valentine's day, mother's day, father's day, easter, st. patrick's day, columbus day, thanksgiving. But those old history books of yore and mindless classroom drivel didn't do justice to the truth one can find on the computer nowadays. Just type in any of those words and find out things you never really wanted to know. I know I didn't, but as Jesus said: once you know the truth, you are no longer innocent of it. No, that's not a quote for those of you that are digging out the Bible, but there is a couple of places where Jesus says something darn close to that, and it's something that I believe.

Which is why I haven't celebrated any holidays in many years. I don't want to piss of Jesus by celebrating holidays that have origins in bloodbaths and murders or celebrations of death. Holidays are commericalized to the point that the only TRUE way to show someone you love them is to buy something you can't afford and they don't need!! How many people do you know that regularly return the gifts you give them? How much time, effort, gas, money, and stress do you spend to give people gifts that they don't like, want, or appreciate? WHY would you do that to yourself anyway? Holidays are designed to profit the stores, malls, and mail-orders, gas companies, credit card companies, and in the longrun, collection agencies that go after you when you can't pay your bills.

So, I get a lot of guff (same as Erik who commented on The Token Hippie) for refusing to "celebrate", to stress myself and spend money I don't have to buy gifts for people I don't necessarily like (family and former co-workers alike). I see on TV often people who gloat over the fact that they return or "re-gift" most of the things they are given. IF those people were on my gift list, they wouldn't be anymore.

I'm not going to slave over a hot stove all day to cook a huge meal for ungrateful slobs who will drop in and complain about the food, watch my TV, snooze on my sofa, drink my booze (when I had any in the house), then wander off before the dishes are done. They usually show up again around December 25th to see if I bought them something useless they can return and get something they really want!! I don't need a diamond to know how much Chris loves me, I certainly don't need candy. I'm not Irish and don't consider it necessary to drink green beer. I don't celebrate ANY U.S. holiday because it's all BS anyway. Already discussed thanksgiving and christmas up there.... what else. Oh, my birthday. Well, Jesus didn't celebrate his birthday, and what I read in the Bible doesn't indicate to me that He was born on the 25th of December, in fact it is my opinion that He was born in the springtime, more around April (thus the Spring Lamb).

I agree with some of The Token Hippie's responders about the difference in paganism, christianity, catholisizm, etc. Every holiday has it roots in some pagan rite or some ritual or another. There are a lot of people who won't agree with me, and hopefully we won't have to hear from too many "you're damned to hell" types, because I truly believe in and follow Jesus every day of my life. Anyone that can show me in the Bible where Jesus celebrated anything besides passover is more than welcome to stop by. I think people who stress themselves and empty their pockets and max out their credit cards are damned too, to a shorter life span because they're too stressed with keeping up with the Jones's and not as concerned about taking time to take a long walk, smell the roses, and thank Jesus for every healthful stress free moment we are given. Of course all that stress and bad eating will only help out the hospitals and doctors and pharmacies!

I'd be interested in how many of you find out things you never knew about holidays and if you've changed your minds on how you'll celebrate things in the future. Please leave out those "tradition" comments, because that's bunk. Tradition talks have come from Chris's parents about thanksgiving. Bahhhh and baloney. Just because it's a celebration of taking over the Indian's land, making them slaves, and in the end killing them for being nice to the whites, we'll just make it a celebration of family and too much food. Tradition be darned, it's all made-up BS from someone who wants to sell something, or wants a day off with pay.