Merry Chrismukkah...And A Happy New Year!

One fun thing about December is the fact that it's a month for holidays for many religions! Be it Christmas, Hanukkah, Eid, or Kwanzaa, we all have our reasons for the season. But how shall we go about celebrating them the politically correct way?

My husband and I decided to host a Merry Chrismukkah Tacky Sweater Party. In hindsight I suppose we should have called it Merry Chrismukwanzeidkuh, but let's face it, nobody would be able to pronounce it and it wouldn't fit on an invitation. This year was the first, and while there was a small turnout, I'll venture to say it was enjoyed by all. We donned our snowflake sweaters while channeling our inner Bill Cosby and got to town! If you think about it, things like this are really the reasons people love the holidays - good food, drink, and company.

Society gets carried away with the commercialism of it all. I was overwhelmed when choosing which holiday card to send out! There are simply too many from which to choose. I finally settled on a simple red, black, and white one that read, "Happy Holidays."

But back to the Chrismukkah party. Just selecting the invitation was task enough. Do you know how hard it is to find holiday invitations without stockings, trees, or ornaments on them? However, I did end up discovering a pale green one with multi-colored snowflakes. Snow's kosher for everyone, right?

I suppose our house can be a bit depressing, especially if you're one of those people who likes to have their home look like Santa just vomited Christmas spirit everywhere. We have no decorations whatsoever. A lone menorah sat on our stove, as it was the second night of Hanukkah. But I made sure to have Christmas cookies, latkes, and plenty of holiday cocktails to go around.

As a Jew, what's known as the "December Dilemma" in our world can get a bit awkward. People I meet automatically assume I celebrate Christmas and wish me a merry one; I get ornaments from coworkers as presents. But the holidays for me are a sort of guilty pleasure. It's like going to a birthday party - you get cake, goodies, and favors, but it's still not your party.

So what can we do to make everyone comfortable and ensure a great holiday season? Wish them just that - happy holidays! And of course you can always throw in the standard, "...and a happy new year!" Santa voice optional.