Everyone’s got them.  Regardless of your religious association, national affiliation, or whatever else, or lack thereof for that matter, every single person has some reason, occasion, and way to celebrate.  In the States, we tout, especially between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, the holidays as a way for people to get together, shop, and do seemingly silly things that somehow commemorate the warmth and fuzziness that we feel in our hearts.

In Morocco, at least with the family I have been spending time with, it isn’t so different.  The holidays, Eid in this case, are a time for everyone to enjoy the company of family and friends.  For the past few days (at the time of writing), there have been all kinds of family showing up, phone calls to people in different cities, and a few rams slaughtered in the process.  There has been a lot of smiling, hearty laughter, and the occasional fight that marks any gathering of a lot of people.  The kitchen has been hopping, not that it isn’t usually, with too many cooks and too much good food.  And, even the surliest members of the family have somehow managed to put aside their angst (or whatever you want to call it) to spend time with the family.

Conceptually, a holiday is a great excuse for all of us to realize how unintelligent we’ve been in the past year (or other length of time) by ignoring our conveniently forgotten cousins, yelling at our kids, or being a general snot to those around us.  However, it only works if we have other days, which inevitably happen, when we haven’t been on top form.  Whether it is Eid, Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukah, Diwali, or whatever else, holidays give us the gentle reminder that perhaps the way we have carried ourselves throughout the year wasn’t actually the way we want to be.  Spreading the kindness that we associate with those funky reindeer sweaters, menorahs, or animal slaughtering is exactly the point of celebration, such that we are able to enjoy the company of others.

Beyond this though, the trick is to carry that holiday spirit as far as we can through the remainder of the year.  It is very easy to let it fade quickly, especially for those of us who choose to participate in the shopping shenanigans of Black Friday or similar economic booms.  But, there are still great reasons to carry the love forward.  It may not be easy, it may not be simple, but the prospect of not having to start from square one in terms of our kindness, joy, and altruism next year is quite delightful.

So here’s to a happy holiday season that is inclusive, loving, cheesy, memorable, safe, and fun.  Every single one of us has something to celebrate, and the holidays are just one way to remind us about it.  As a result, long may we carry on with weird traditions that some of us still don’t understand (growing pine trees to chop them down?) because of what they really represent: we all are part of one common human family. 

I’ll be taking winter break for a few weeks.  Look for a new post on January 5th.  Happy holidays everyone.

Advertisement