By Lisa E Kirkwood
As the fall season shifts and morphs into winter, the hours of sunlight decrease, temperatures drop, and cold weather sets in. Trees are without their leaves, birds have migrated and left for warmer climates, animals hibernate, nature is sleepy or frozen, snow and ice cover the land and waters.
In December, we observe the winter solstice and the longest night of the year. This is the season of building snowmen and igloos, skating, skiing, sliding, and snowboarding; adults and kids can enjoy winter activities together and have fun doing any or all of them.
Of those who’d rather escape the cold and snow, retirees, vacationers, many professionals and business owners who can afford to take extended holidays head south towards tropical paradises to change the scenery.
At this time of year, most people seek the comfort of indoors, the warmth of fireplaces, heaters, and radiators, thick clothes, cozy blankets, and hot teas. During winter, direct social interactions become more limited, while post-autumn melancholy, nostalgia, and the feeling of isolation can affect more individuals. What better way to fight off the winter blues than holiday shopping?
This is especially true for women who account for the majority of buyers in just about every area, from basic groceries to high end products and luxury items. Across the world, holiday shopping is what makes this season happy for many people, aside from the yearly gatherings with friends and relatives, and exchanging presents.
December is also known as “the month of giving”, due to its association with major holidays like Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa, which involve gift-giving, and a surge in charitable donations.
This period sees a significant increase in philanthropic activity, with many people making year-end contributions to charities and focusing on acts of selflessness. The month often begins with Giving Tuesday, a global day of generosity that encourages a shift from consumerism to helping the needy and less fortunate.
In the USA, the official debut of the shopping season is the day after Thanksgiving, known as Black Friday, and it goes on through December and early January. Everyone celebrates in their own ways, regardless of language, culture, ethnicity, and even socioeconomic factors. Some buyers can get exhausted after hours of holiday shopping, walking, and spending!
It is peak time for record sales, more than in any other month, enticing deals and discounts abound, and buyers capitalize on these to stock up on essentials and get gifts for dear ones.
This is considered the most wonderful time of the year, the season of merriment, marked by numerous symbols, traditions, festivals, and events that connect people of various creeds and religions, as the holiday spirit and magic transcend social differences, barriers, and borders.
St. Nicholas Day is observed annually on December 6. St. Nicholaswas a real historical figure, a bishop who lived during the third century AD in what is now modern-day Türkiye. He was known for his piety, kindness, generosity, and gift-giving to the poor.
One of the most famous stories is of Nicholas secretly providing three bags of gold to a poor man whose daughters faced a life of poverty and slavery. He threw the pouches of gold through their window, one of which landed in a stocking hung to dry by the fire, inspiring the tradition of hanging stockings for gifts.
Over time, in European folklore, he became the patron saint of children and sailors, and later on the jolly figure of Santa Claus, a shortened version of the name Nicholas, who delivers presents.
Ugly Sweater Day is celebrated on the third Friday of December each year, encouraging people to wear their tacky, gaudy, not-so-pretty, and fun holiday sweaters. The day was created in 2011 to add a light-hearted respite to the busy holiday season, which can become quite a frenzy, and has grown into an international event, celebrated with parties, social media hashtag campaigns, and fundraising for charities.
This new tradition gained momentum over the past decade, and it’s particularly popular among employees at work, many of whom take extra steps to decorate their sweaters by adding bells, bows, lights, or even battery-operated LEDs!
Secret Santa is a holiday gift exchange game where each person in a group is randomly assigned to buy a gift for another participant, keeping their own identity a secret until the gift is given and opened. The process typically involves drawing names, buying gifts within a set budget, and then exchanging them, often at a party, where everyone tries to guess their Secret Santa.
Santa Claus. A beloved figure in our childhood and beyond, the contemporary image of Santa Claus as a jolly, white-bearded man in a red suit was popularized by various folk traditions, as well as writers and artists in many countries who shaped public opinion and collective taste. Santa Claus, coming from the North Pole in his sleigh pulled by reindeer, carries a large red bag with gifts for well-behaved children and many fulfilled wishes.
Malls and shopping centers throughout the world host a seasonal holiday court complete with wide displays of oversized toys, fully ornamented, tall Christmas trees, gift boxes, and a live Santa Claus, who holds children in his lap while parents take photos, cherished moments and precious memories to be shared and enjoyed for years to come.
Nowadays, with democratization, affirmation, and equality of gender roles, you can often find a Mrs. Santa who entertains children or makes donations to needy communities. She is no longer just the wife of Santa Claus, but a gift giver in her own right.
The Christmas Tree symbolizes hope, life, and renewal during the darkest days of the year. It serves as a central point for holiday decorations, family gatherings, gift exchanges, and a reminder of the joy and generosity associated with this season.
Originally, small candles were placed on the branches to symbolize the stars above a forest, then, in the modern era, they were replaced by electric and LED lights. Glass ornaments, candies, small toys, silvery or gold tinsel strips, and often a shiny, sparkly star on top, they all complete the tableau of a beautiful Christmas tree.
Fun fact: in geographical zones where coniferous trees do not grow naturally, people either buy them from colder regions, or use local trees as substitutes for Christmas trees. Therefore, do not be surprised if you see palm trees in Hawai’i adorned both with beach shells and winter decorations!
Christmas. An annual festival celebrated on December 25 that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ; it is both a sacred religious holiday for Christians and a worldwide cultural and commercial phenomenon, observed by billions of people with a mix of Christian, pre-Christian, and secular traditions.
The most famous holiday of winter, Christmas has ancient roots in the old Roman celebration called Saturnalia, a major event held annually in the month of December. Saturnalia was connected to the winter solstice and the end of the agricultural planting season. The festival honored Saturn, the Roman god of agriculture and the “golden age” of prosperity.
During this week-long event, businesses and schools were closed; Saturnalia was a time of gift-giving, parties, decorations, and a temporary suspension of social order. After the Roman Empire adopted Christianity, the Christmas holiday overlapped and incorporated many traditions from Saturnalia, such as greenery, extra lighting, general feasting, and gift exchanges.
The seasonal charm is further enhanced by sparkling lights, toy reindeer and slides, large, glitzy decorations, and colorful Nativity scenes. Entire neighborhoods and towns compete for the best Christmas-themed displays, and people drive by to admire them. Many homes are adorned with poinsettias, garlands, wreaths, mistletoe, and holly. Villages, towns, and cities bask in light, the youth go from house to house to sing carols, celebrate, and revive old traditions; festive meals and treats are shared with family, friends, and neighbors.
The diverse blend of religious and cultural practices makes Christmas a significant global event, both religiously and commercially. When I first came to the USA, two decades ago, people were just transitioning from the long-established Merry Christmas greeting to Happy Holidays to become more inclusive of various religions and cultures represented in the American society and in the world.
Hanukkah is a Rabbinic Jewish festival commemorating the recovery of Jerusalem and subsequent rededication of the Second Temple in the second century BCE. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days, starting on the 25th day of Kislev according to the Hebrew calendar, which may occur at any time from November 28 to December 27 in the Gregorian calendar.
The festival is observed by lighting the candles of a candelabrum with nine branches, commonly called a menorah or hanukkiah. One branch is placed above or below the others and its candle is used to light the other eight candles. This unique candle is called the shammash (“attendant”). Each night, one additional candle is lit by the shammash until all eight candles are lit together on the final night of the festival.
Other Hanukkah festivities include singing Hanukkah songs, playing the game of dreidel and eating oil-based foods, such as latkes and sufganiyot (similar to jelly donuts), and dairy foods. Since the 1970s, the worldwide Chabad Hasidic movement has initiated public menorah lightings in open public places in many countries.
Hanukkah has attained major cultural significance in North America and elsewhere, especially among secular Jews, due to often occurring around the same time as Christmas during the festive season.
Kwanzaa. A modern, non-religious holiday that celebrates the importance of the pan-African history, values, family, community and culture, Kwanzaa was created in 1966 by the American professor and activist Maulana Karenga based on African harvest festival traditions from various parts of West, East, and Southeast Africa.
This annual event is observed primarily in the United States from December 26 to January 1, culminating in a communal feast called Karamu, usually on the sixth day. The ideas and concepts of Kwanzaa are expressed in the Swahili language, one of the most widely spoken languages in Africa.
The Kwanzaa candles, also known as the Mishumaa Saba, are seven candles—one black, three red, and three green—arranged on a kinara. The colors symbolize the African struggle and people (black), the efforts and bloodshed of their struggle (red), and the future and hope that emerge from that struggle (green).
The black candle is lit first on the first day of Kwanzaa. The candles are then lit each day, alternating between red and green, to represent the seven principles of Kwanzaa: black for Umoja (Unity), the red candles for Kujichagulia (Self-Determination), Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility), and Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics), and the green candles for Nia (Purpose), Kuumba (Creativity), and Imani (Faith).
Even though it was created by and for Black Americans to preserve, revitalize, and promote African American culture, folks of different races and ethnicities can also embrace Kwanzaa, similar to how people other than Mexicans sometimes observe Cinco de Mayo. Other countries where Kwanzaa is celebrated include Jamaica, France, Canada, and Brazil.
Across the globe, the winter season brings people together for various holidays, celebrations, and observances. These events may be cultural or religious, big or small, of ancient origin or fairly new, but they all serve the same purposes: establishing or strengthening social communion, highlighting family values, and enjoying some fun time and companionship.
Year after year, during all seasons, people reconnect not only to observe important events, but to acknowledge each other, and to celebrate humanity in its endless aspects.
Bright days, merry days, happy, happy holidays!
