One thing I love to celebrate are cultural holidays and festivals. These are even more exciting in other countries. I was in Victoria on British Columbia Day (the first Monday in August), and so we got to see a parade, fireworks, and other bits and pieces. Sort of similar to a 4th of July celebration, really, but it was still neat seeing the Parliament Building lit up, the crowds, and all the noise and hubbub.

In Spain, we were in Catalonia during Mercè. While we missed most of the exciting stuff, we did see glimpses, including some of the huge puppets and papier-mâché creatures that parade through the streets. In various cities in the region, there were Catalonian flags, banners of all types, and other decorations for the festival.

Perhaps someday I’ll be able to be in China at this time of year, but for now, I’ll have to celebrate the year 4706 in Los Angeles. It’s too bad the DeafRead conference wasn’t a week or two later (although the hotel prices would definitely have shot up!); then I could have had dinner in Chinatown, or attended the parade (I did that once, several years ago; definitely worth attending at least once. But man, those firecrackers are LOUD!). As it is, I’ll probably head downtown to Los Angeles’ version of Chinatown (or if we have time, Monterey Park or another outlying area with a strong Chinese presence) and find a good restaurant to chow down at.

If you’ve been in another country during a holiday or festival, what did you do and see? Are there any particular ceremonies or events you’d recommend? Can always use suggestions for my next trip…

In a still re-emerging New Orleans, they’re celebrating on Bourbon Street tonight, as we shift from the end of the Christmas season (marked by some on Epiphany, January 6; others on Candlemas, February 2; and for a good number of us, when we pay off our credit bills) and enter Lent– the 40 days before Easter. Elsewhere, five politicians are celebrating various wins, but so far, it’s still a horse race.

For the first time in my voting life, I’ve actually encountered a primary where my vote potentially counted; in the past, Californians voted mostly in June, which was too late to actively have a say in who the presidential nominee would be. Unfortunately for me, neither of the candidates left standing are what I want. In the general election, I’ll vote for somebody, I’m sure, but I am uncertain that the eventual winner is going to make the sacrifices we as a nation are going to have to endure if we want to have any future that’s worthwhile.

But in the meantime, I’m watching the results online, and pondering the possible conclusion that’s emerging: the Democrats are definitely heading towards a convention without an anointed nominee, and the Republicans, depending on what Romney and Huckabee decide to do, could very well end up in the same boat. Because of that, and solely because of that, this political Mardi Gras promises to be about more than just flashiness, loot, and broken promises.

The primary process still way too long in my opinion, though.  Do we really need another nine months of Clinton and Obama (Nine months is the length of a pregnancy, ladies and gennelmen– I bet you by Halloween, we’re gonna be begging for labor to start!)?

The media coverage hasn’t helped either. Think of it this way: this is a job interview for the most powerful office in the land. When you conduct or undergo an interview, are you asked questions about your hair? Do people have their spouses speak for them? Do questions about religion crop up? We’re allowing the media to control the discussion, and dictate the questions asked during this interview, and they’re doing a piss-poor job of it.

Nevertheless, as a political junkie, I’ll just sit back and enjoy this. Given the tit-for-tat wins of Clinton and Obama, John Edwards is looking more and more like a loser by the minute. I know he left primarily because his funds were running low and he didn’t have a real shot at the nomination (for lots of reasons), but dammit– it’s clear the man could have played king- or queen-maker. As it is, the poor sod is now a political has-been. It’s too bad– I liked what he had to say, especially on economic matters. There really is an economic divide in this country: the rich vs. everyone else. The sooner we wake up to that reality and combat it, the better off we’ll be.

So who do you think we’ll end up with come this fall? I think possibly Obama v. McCain. You think I’m right– or wrong? Tell me, and tell me why.

Christmas time is here
Happiness and cheer

One of my favorite holidays is here: Christmas. While I know not all of you celebrate the holiday, it really is everywhere these days, and other religions have similar celebrations that highlight peace and goodwill in its many forms. Whether it’s reflection and forgiveness as emphasized during Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, or the sense of a new start and the promise of possibilities, as Tet, New Year’s, and a host of other holidays and festivals promote, Christmas, in its fundamental roots, is about our spiritual self and our humanity.

Fun for all that children call
Their favorite time of year

The commercialism is just a layer that was added not all that long ago. As this interesting piece by historian John Steele Gordon outlines, the origins of our modern-day Christmas emerged in New York City, in the days of Nieuw Amsterdam. The Dutch children who eagerly awaited Sinterklaes influenced their non-Dutch playmates, and aided by merchants from A.T. Stewart to Macy’s to Gimbel’s to today’s Wal-Mart, Christmas flourished from its religious roots as the Christ Mass to a largely secular holiday filled with red-nosed reindeer, magical snowmen, and children up way past their bedtime.

Snowflakes in the air
Carols everywhere

One of the things I really miss at Christmastime is snow. Here in Southern California, we’re not that far from the mountains and the promise of snow, but it’s not the same as looking out the window or walking out the door and seeing and feeling that crisp, crunchy, fresh-fallen blanket of white. I’m the kind of person that likes snow from, say, about a week before Thanksgiving until January 2nd. Then I’m ready for something else. Roll on, Spring! Those of you in the Midwest, who have been suffering through storms lately, may share that sentiment. Others may be wondering if you’ll be getting any snow at all. But regardless of where you are, snow is part and parcel of that wholesome, old-time Christmas image, whether cinematic, fanciful, or realized.

Olden times and ancient rhymes
Of love and dreams to share

For me, Christmas isn’t necessarily about gifts. At my age, that kind of stopped long ago. One of the reasons I love this time of year is the feeling of goodwill, the sentiment that we take this time to think of others, to spread cheer, goodwill, and yes, love. We don’t always do it, but I think the fact that the potential to do so is there says a lot. Regardless of all the problems we have in this world, love is a commonality that all spiritual belief systems share, because it really is at the heart of what being human is about: the capacity to feel, to laugh, to cry, to reach our internal and external potential, and most of all, to work on behalf of the whole– whether it is as small as the family, or as large as humankind.

Sleigh bells in the air
Beauty everywhere
Yuletide by the fireside
And joyful memories there

As we get older, Christmas ostensibly becomes about the children in our lives, whether it’s our own children, nieces and nephews, cousins, grandchildren, or even just children in the neighborhood. But I think it’s also important to reach into ourselves and remember the children we once were, and that we still are. For all the adult responsibilities we have, for all the burdens we assume, underneath, we’re still young, even if it’s just at heart. Youth is not just about physical appearances and chronological age; it’s about attitude. It’s an attitude that appears during the holidays. This is part of the message that’s in Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, especially when Scrooge revisits the celebration at Fezziwig’s. It’s not about money, it’s not about appearances; sometimes, it’s just something as simple as fellowship, good cheer, and the promise and potential of love. Sometimes, I wish though, that this carried throughout the year, and didn’t just end when the credit card bills arrive in the mail.

Christmas time is here
We’ll be drawing near
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year
Oh, that we could always see
Such spirit through the year…

As the song says, “Oh, that we could always see/Such spirit through the year…” Christmas is ostensibly about family. But I think it’s also about the human family, and that was the message of the original Christmas: the birth of a savior, who had come to rejuvenate the world. While not everyone believes in the divinity of Christ, the message found in his gospel is one that we could all learn from. It really is, in its fundamental form, the Golden Rule– a precept that is found in some form in all spiritual beliefs worldwide.

To put it another way, we’re all Charlie Brown: we’re surrounded by the trappings of the modern world, of commercialism, but deep down, it’s about the stars, it’s about a simple tree, it’s about peace, happiness, and goodwill.

Merry Christmas, everyone.
 

… And as just as Tom here has written
We say to hell with Great Britain!
The eagle inside belongs to us!

The actual date was Tuesday, July 2, 1776, when the Second Continental Congress declared independence; July 4 was the day the Congress formally adopted the Declaration of Independence, after numerous revisions, including stripping out any references to slavery (that messy, dirty little secret of ours would have to wait some fourscore and seven years later before it would be resolved). The Declaration wasn’t even officially signed until later, beginning with the order for formal signatures on July 19, 1776, and culminating on August 2. If we really followed the actual chronology of events, we’d have a month-long holiday. Fine by me– most other countries provide more vacation time than we do (of course, the trade-off is slower growth in wages. Can’t have it all, I guess).

Today’s a day, regardless of your heritage, your political convictions, your station in life, and all the other individual and unique aspects, to celebrate America, and its ideals. It is a day to remember how we came to be a nation, what has occurred since, and where we are going. For a historical look backward, read Thomas Jefferson’s reminiscences of the Second Continental Congress and the days leading up to the Declaration. For a more fun (and surprisingly fairly historically accurate) look at the events leading up to our Founding Fathers saying “to hell with Great Britain,” check out the film 1776. It’s not your conventional musical, and there’s very little dancing whatsoever, but it’s an enjoyable look at an important period in our history.

I see fireworks! I see the pageant and
Pomp and parade
I hear the bells ringing out
I hear the cannons roar
I see Americans - all Americans
Free forever more…

Happy 4th of July, everyone.