“I would like to talk about a topic that is near and dear to me.
I realize I’m a little late here being that Christmas was
celebrated the other day. As I say better late than never. I was
really busy lately with last minute shopping for my Christian
friends and Jesus’s birthday. After all Christmas is a birthday
celebration. One more thing dears Nothing wrong with Happy
Holidays. Nobody is preventing anyone from saying Merry Christmas.
I say state whatever makes your toes tap. I do hope every Christian
enjoyed Christmas and everyone was able to enjoy the
Christmas/Holiday season. I’m hoping the season with whatever
special day you celebrate that it was meaningful, joyful to you.
Businesses say happy holidays because it includes everyone Happy
Holidays is conclusive.
Being of the Jewish persuasion I celebrate Hanukkah. No make that
us Jews observe the holiday. yes we get out electron microscopes
and we carefully scrutinize every part of this special day. Just a
bon mot. Hanukkah even though it originated near the birth of a
certain Jewish boy. Legend has it in a stable. I suppose being the
Christmas season the hotels were booked. At any rate Hanukkah is
not Judaism’s version of Christmas. Though I sincerely wish my dear
Christian friends a merry Christmas. To each their own I say.
Lady Lynda wags her finger at the crowd seated in front of her. To
signal emphasis. She cleared her throat. Took a sip of water and
continued with her speech. As she talked she looked at the people’s
expression to see their how they were responding. How friendly,
interested they were.
“This holiday is in remembrance when around 100 BCE. That’s our version of BC The letters stand for Before the Christian Era. Oh pardon my interruption. Continuing on. The Maccabees , fighters for the faith defeated the dastardly Syrians and Greeks who ignominiously forbade our folks to practice our faith. How truculent of them. I suppose they never heard of the expression. Practice makes perfect. To add insult to injury they made our ancestors worship a pig in their Grecian temples. Pigs are not kosher. The Hebrew word is tref. It means unclean. The Hebrews took umbrage with their rulers. Mind you I am utterly certain modern day Greeks and Syrians arn’t like that these days. One must not condemn any ethnic group for how they were in the past. Its in the past. I say let go of it. Tata”
“This special day lasts seven days. The reason is there was only enough oil for one day. What a miracle. Oh such fortuitous event. The oil lasted seven days. Ergo we are in observance for one week. Some of us light a candle holder with seven structures for seven candles. The explanation for this is the larger one is in the middle. With this one we light a candle for each of the seven days. Me personally I skp this part because Heaven forbid I would inadvertently start a fire. But most of us do. The true meaning of this time of year is religious freedom. To be free to worship as we please. Oh by the way there is one similarity with Christmas. One that is quite important to our dear boys and girls. Their mothers and fathers give out a gift a day. Some of give out little flat round chocolates wrapped in golden foil to represent money, or in the Hebraic language gelt. Some of us spin a top with eight sides called a dreidal. We bet on what side with wound on the surface it is on. Sometimes we sing “Dreidel dreidel dreidal. I made it out of clay. With dreidal, dreidel. We dreidel I will play. Lady Lynda sang in a sweet contralto. We make potato pancakes called Latkes. So in essence it is a major time for us Jews. ”
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