Christmas. Hanukkah. Kwanzaa. Boxing Day. Omisoka. Saint Nicholas' Day. St. Stephen's Day. Yule. Festivus. These are just a few of the holidays celebrated by the world in a matter of days/weeks. OK...I added the last one, but that is because I need to air my grievances to all of you.
I live on Facebook...it's how I feel, and stay, connected to a lot of you. I get to see your family celebrations, your family sorrows, your milestones. Facebook helps me with that sense of belonging I'm always searching for. But damn, some of you really need to grab a cup of coffee, a beer, a glass of wine, or a shot of whiskey and just scroll through what you're posting. Look at it from an objective point of view...ask yourself...if my husband/wife/son/granddaughter/friend....posted this, how would my interpretation of THEM be impacted? Ask yourself, in my effort to "be funny" am I 1) perpetuating hate, 2) increasing the spread of falsehoods, 3) putting others down to make myself feel superior?
Lately I'm seeing a lot of "If (blank) offends you, then (blank)" or "And all of the sudden a (insert your favorite insult for those who are different from you), though (blank) would happen." So, now we WANT to offend each other. Now we WANT to make other people feel uncomfortable? And sadly, most of this is coming from god fearing Christians.....your message isn't one of pride in your values and traditions. Your message is one of intolerance. Your message is being drowned out in your desire to ram your values and traditions down the throats of others who do not believe in the same things as you.
Isn't Christmas all about kindness and giving? I mean, I'm agnostic but I didn't start out that way and I know a fair bit about the bible (both the historical and the fiction.) Mary and Joseph were allowed the use of a manger. Three wise men traversed the desert with gifts. God gave his only begotten son....KINDNESS and GIVING. Yet, here you are, acting like a bunch of bullies who are upset because those more tolerant than you are attempting to include everyone in the "holiday" season.
Every year it gets worse. And let's be clear...this isn't just about the holiday season and your imaginary war on Christmas. This time of year, you know the one that is supposed to bring out the best in us, is bringing out the worst in you. Every year you feel embolden to act like a petulant child. Each year, we treat each other more poorly than the last. What happened to civility? decency? compromise? What happened to embracing our differences and allowing those differences to open our minds, and hearts, to new and exciting things? What happened to just being kind? Hell, what happened to thinking before we speak/act/post?
STOP tearing other people down. START building each other up. STOP thinking the world revolves around you and your way. START appreciating each other's differences.
So, Happy Holidays. Merry Christmas. Happy Hanukkah....and Joyous (insert YOUR holiday here)! And all you need to say in reply to me is "You too!" because that's how adults act.
No comments:
Post a Comment