Leaving For Another Year

[plumtreeblossom]

Last night in RiteAid they were taking down all the Christmas stuff and making a Valentines's display. I hate it when Christmas goes away. It's always been my favorite time of year, and it doesn't feel right that it all leads up to only one day. I wish it was a twelve day festival as it was in medieval times, as well as in many of its pre-Christian incarnations. At the onset of winter in temperate climates, it's human nature to crave light and warmth, and its coming also fosters the longing for a period in the year when norms are relaxed, and something can be celebrated. Hanukkah is over, too, but it does get the multi-day thing right. It is winter. I still want more winter festival.

Comments

[moria923.livejournal.com]

In the Catholic Church, Epiphany is always celebrated the first Sunday after New Year's. Secularly, though, it seems to me the "winter festival" runs pretty much the whole of December. Christmas Day itself is often an anticlimax for me, especially since I have a new holiday tradition: being sick on Christmas. But the "festival" aspect goes on till New Year's, with parties and such. You're right, though: it's sad to see it all go away, especially knowing that it's to be followed by deep winter.

Ah well, at least we have Arisia to look forward to.

[kencf0618.livejournal.com]

A lot of people crash and get sick on Christmas inasmuch as that's when the stress is off. But the commercial holiday creep isn't just inane (St. Valentine's Day displays already?!?), it is in effect anti-sacred time.