It’s that time of the year. There are a few celebrations converging, even though in Toronto we are only really bombarded with one. Everywhere. From the music in the shopping malls, to the beer ads in the bus shelters, you can’t get away from Christmas. And if you step into a dollar store, you might just feel overwhelmed by the gift bag section alone.
Makes me wonder where people go to get Hanukkah gift bags (Hanukkah starts tomorrow at sundown), or Kwanzaa paper (Kwanzaa starts on Dec. 26th). For that matter, what if you wanted some Christmas gift wrap that was actually religious?!
And then there is the Solstice. Wednesday Dec. 21st is the shortest day of the year. I’m not sure it’s a gift-giving day, but it’s the event that inspired the date for Christmas, and probably other festivals of light.
My point? There is more going on in the next few weeks than Christmas. Although you might not know it to look around. And “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas” is a great way to acknowledge this diversity, and still share the joy.
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copyright 2011 Annemarie Shrouder
author, speaker and facilitator on issues of diversity and inclusion
www.beeing.ca
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