A holiday is a period set aside by law or custom, whereby normal everyday activities, particularly work or company related, including academics, are curtailed or completely stopped. In general, holidays are planned to allow people to commemorate or celebrate an occasion or belief of particular cultural or ethnic importance. Holidays give us a chance to relax, enjoy ourselves and get back to the essentials of family life. Some holidays, such as Christmas and New Year’s Eve are associated with festivities and parties lasting all night and some others like Valentine’s Day, Easter and Halloween have a slightly longer character. All in all, a holiday celebration is a fun time for everyone to enjoy themselves.
Holidays come in a wide variety of types and the list is not even exhaustive. The most popular types of holiday are Christmas and New Year’s Eve, St. Patrick’s Day, Hanukkah, and the four major religious holidays: Christmas, New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, and St. Patrick’s Day. All these come with their own special traditions and customs. However, it is not surprising that some of the more well-known ones are not so much observed as they should be in certain parts of the world. There is a very valid reason for this, and that is that many countries and cultures have different beliefs and practices regarding religious holidays, which can lead to conflicting reasons to observe one holiday while in other parts of the world there is no cause for celebration at all.
Some people believe that federal holidays are important because they add to the spirit of America. This is certainly true when we look at the way our nation has always tended to deal with its issues and concerns. The first President Washington, for example, took his holiday upon returning from hectic office tour during the winter of 1776. He had just suffered a heart attack and was suffering from depression.
To add to his mental state, he made a vow to return to Washington to deal with his political problems. Two days later, on New Year’s Day, he took time off from his office to visit with his family and friends. On that same day, as well, a group of Quakers decided to make their way to Valley Forge, a town located in Virginia and dedicated to religious observances. They were met by the Continental army and after a week they decided to assemble at sundown and walk to the White House to wish President Washington a Happy New Year. President Washington enjoyed their company and signed the treaty that day officially starting the tradition of annual religious holidays. Some people believe that this might have helped create a stronger national character among Americans.
For many people, however, a religious significance is not quite what they look for when deciding whether or not to have a holiday celebrated. Holidays have a way of bringing people together and making life a bit easier. They can also serve as a time for people to bond and remind each other of things that they’ve forgotten. And so, for many people, celebrating a religious holiday like Thanksgiving has become a yearly event. They don’t even wait until Thanksgiving Day to take part in all of the traditions surrounding the holiday.
When you’re planning your own unique holiday party, one of the easiest ways to remember the meaning of Christmas is to keep the old stories in mind. There are plenty of great Christmas stories out there that are centered around the historical periods of the Pilgrims and the settlers. In fact, many of the traditions we celebrate today actually began with the Pilgrims. You might want to gather some of these stories up and read them to your guests before you hold your holiday party. Then they can enjoy the true meaning of Christmas, instead of just seeing it as a series of commercials on television.