I woke up this morning feeling into what does a Holiday or Holy Day or another day in my life mean to me?
I notice that I felt annoyed about these super imposed ideas that I need to celebrate these “special” days of the year. This is not a new sensation or thought for me. I am just choosing to write about it today. I started questioning myself about my beliefs. Yesterday someone asked me “do you celebrate?” And I replied “celebrate what?” Then she said Easter or Passover? And I replied “I celebrate every day.” Well, the conversation didn’t have anywhere else to go on her end so she walked away. Personally, I would have like to explore it further but that wasn’t the direction it took. I smile as I write this. I am not trying to be contrary or dismissive. I am trying to examine and understand what I am “supposed” to be celebrating.
I wake up each day in celebration that I am breathing
I am healthy and I perceive my individual life as being pretty wonderful.
Then I ask myself “Are you being cynical?” I don’t feel cynical. As a matter of fact I feel very happy and delighted to be living and breathing as I already stated and I want to add that I am alert, aware and for the most part awake.
So what is this about for me? I know there is a part of the marketing and the hype about holidays, holy days that I don’t appreciate.
I know that the holiday’s confused and also delighted me as a child.
I know as an adult I don’t have much of an attachment to these prescribed events.
I know I love thinking about how much fun I had on these holiday’s as a kid. I liked going to my grandparents house where my sister and I would spend the day with our cousins. We would eat and play and laugh and have so much fun. The memories are delicious and quite satisfying.
So I ask myself–Do I need those types of experiences now as an adult? Do I actually desire those types of experiences now as an adult? I love laughing and playing with my friends and I do that a lot in my present life. Of course it is not running around on cement (as a kid I lived in Queens, NY so it wasn’t playing on grass, it was scraping knees and arms on gravel and cement) Now it is dinners and stories and feelings and walking, theater, dancing and traveling.
Where is this conversation going? I think it is about the marketing and the money and the hype that is pushed at us at every turn. It feels like a pseudo representation of loving family and friends. And again, this may sound cynical and I am trying my hardest to not sound negative. I may be failing in this translation of my thoughts but I am doing my best. For me, the marketing takes away from family and friends and just being with loved ones and enjoying their words, lives and company. It makes it into this “event” that has to look a certain way. I guess it can be whatever we consciously make it into. And I am sure there are a lot of different experiences taking place.
I think my ponderings (not a word but I like it) have helped me to formulate my deeper question-
Can we celebrate ourselves and each other every day because we are here, alive and desiring connection with others?
Something to think about—
Enjoy your Holiday, Holy Day and Being Alive!
