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| photo by Gina Villanueva Matchinsky |
MERRY CHRISTMAS! This is how I would greet and would want to be greeted on Christmas day regardless of whether people say that it is politically incorrect to do so or not. I am not political and I don't care if I am incorrect. I don't care for Happy Holidays because it is too impersonal and there is no warmth. It takes away the spirit of the greeting.
Even if its real essence is the birth of Jesus and is associated with Christianity, what is actually being celebrated on Christmas day is joy, peace and love that brings forth the spirit of giving and goodwill. Take Christmas out and it is just another holiday devoid of its special meaning and of its real substance.
There are many other holidays and people greet according to what holiday is being celebrated. So why exclude Christmas? I don't see why people should not greet other people Merry Christmas when it is the occasion being celebrated. You don't greet people Happy Holiday in the 4th of July and even if some people are not Chinese, they get to greet other people Kung Hei Fat Choi when the Chinese New Year comes. In the Philippines, we even greet our Muslim brothers happy Ramadan when Ramadan day comes even if we are not celebrating it, so why not Merry Christmas?
Not greeting Merry Christmas, for me, is the way really big companies avoid the spirit of giving associated with Christmas ergo saving them a lot of money. Making people greet happy holiday instead of Merry Christmas psychs people and in case of companies, employees to not expect anything when Christmas time comes because it is not actually Christmas being celebrated. It takes away the spirit of giving and turns Christmas into just another holiday one is free not to go to work on. I don't even think of it as a matter of religion or belief, I see it as big corporations being the Scrooge and not wanting to join in the spirit of giving depriving employees big time and still boasts of being politically correct at the same time.
So as for me, it is still Merry Christmas on Christmas time and nothing more!
