They've been advertising holiday "bargains" since mid-August, and, as it seems, everyone seems to have forgotten that Christmas is a 12-day holiday, one that begins on Christmas Day and ends on Epiphany, January 5th, which is the traditional commemoration of the arrival of the Magi, with their gifts, and, BTW, the advice to get out of there, as Herod, the local monarch, was out to kill their child. It's not all about exchanging gifts, but, rather, about visiting all our neighbors and friends, to ensure they're well and to offer and receive aid when it's needed.

Now, the holiday is a commemoration of the birth of Christ, but ... according to scripture, Jesus wasn't born in mid-winter.

It was before my time, though not much, that the medieval lord on the hill threw open his larder so the folks in the valley below, on whom he relied to till his fields and protect his territory, could "pork up" and stock up, on provisions that would spoil, or the rats would otherwise consume anyway, in hopes that more of them would survive the winter. The folks in the valley would check up on one another to ensure as few of them as possible would perish. This strengthened the community.

We could use a little more of the traditional commemoration, and perhaps a bit less of the commercialism. We could use a bit more "community", too.

OK ... OK ... I'll get off my soapbox now ...

RE