eve

As I grow up and my family becomes larger and more geographically dispersed, I realize how arbitrary holidays are. Their primary purpose to me and my family is to server as a starting point to the conversation which results in some sort of agreement about when, where, and how to get together. This getting together is the primary purpose of the event, not the underlying mythology or story or event that originally marks the day that starts the aforementioned conversation. I guess these things are useful because without these arbitrary traditions, people wouldn't do the same sort of things.

Seriously, how many people do you know would just agree that on some specific day they would give gifts to nearly everyone they know in some form or another? Mostly gifts of "thought" but for their closest friends and families it might add up to some very significant expense. Who would do that just out of the blue? Nobody. It has to start small. But it essentailly starts the same way. SOmeone has a story about a day and someone else says, "Hey, you know what? We should give our kids a cookie on that day. And a cokkie to our friends, etc. et.c" and so on and then advertisers get involved and soon you have Santa Claus and all sorts of ridiculous expectations like fur coats and iPods.

I like the getting together part. I'm sad to not be able to have the big get together live and in person with my extended family, but we are planning to have our own first xmas tomorrow (or second, really). It will hopefully bring some respite from the possible bad mojo looming over our heads.

Merry xmas, happy holidays everyone.