Half a Step Over

The Holidays Are Coming! What Do I Say?

The holidays are coming! The holidays are coming!! Oh no, what do we say? I have to be politically correct and not insult anyone. Really? If you say Merry Christmas to me it’s an insult? How about if on a Friday late afternoon I say Shabbat Shalom? How exactly are you insulted?

I’ve read several articles in which Donald Trump says he’s a good Christian and when he’s president everyone will be saying “Merry Christmas” all the time. First, I don’t think he’s all that great a Christian. Personally, I find him condescending and uninformed but as he says, he’s very rich. Guess the money makes him righter than anyone else. However, that’s not my point. How is he going to compel "everyone" to say what he wants.

As you can probably tell from the top paragraph, I’m Jewish. If you can’t tell from that, go look up the phrase on Google. They will explain it. I don’t have the energy for it. My point instead is that these are just words. Someone says "Merry Christmas" to me I just smile, nod, and move on—and I usually answer with “Happy Holiday.” I’m not insulted. Not everyone knows my faith, and frankly, I don’t want to know theirs. The bigger question--and frankly, there should be several big questions--is what does it matter? Obviously, if you can tell from clothing that a person is not a Christian, just don’t say it. If not, say whatever you like. No one should be that concerned with it. 

And really, does it matter that a paper cup is red, without any holiday decorations? Shouldn’t it be more important that said red cup is made of paper and probably won’t be recycled by its user? Maybe the planet deserves a holiday greeting and better treatment as well.

And another point is saying the words doesn’t make anyone a good Christian. I find it fascinating that from Thanksgiving to Christmas everyone talks about being good to others, and so many good deeds are done. After December 25, not so much. By the way, wars don’t stop just because it’s Christmas. Hunger goes on, homelessness and poverty are still there. They are just frequently decorated in greenery and tinsel.

My daughter has for the past few years volunteered to fulfill a Christmas wish for a family in need. That makes her a good person, and a good Jew—for us, it’s a mitzvah (also to be looked up). At other times she also makes donations to charities that have meaning for her. Frankly, she really doesn’t care what you say to her. Both of my children have volunteered to feed the hungry, clean up parks, do errands for others. And not in that little four-week period where what you say is all that counts.

Maybe it’s time to not worry so much about the words but to look at the actions. And by the way, Trump’s daughter converted by choice to Judaism. I give her a lot of credit for doing that (and am also a secret admirer of how she has chosen to live her life). But, I wonder what he says to her.

 *   *   *

I think that at some point early in my blogging days I said I’d stay away from politics. This year, though, some of the politicians and what I think of as their idiocy is just getting to me. Trust me when I say that this was the least of my thinking on these issues. You don’t want to know the rest of it.