We all love them. They're the time when we get to enjoy those precious moments with family that we crave all year - you know the moments: Hearing uncle Pete burp the alphabet, watching as grandpa/grandma try to walk up stairs without falling, getting told what you should really be doing with your life/how to live your life by people who have no idea what your life is like. They're the moments we think back on, whether with frustrated rage or patient love, we all have those moments.
But why? Why do we continually celebrate these holidays? Well, two reasons, really - from my experience: Upholding traditions whether family or social, and because everyone else is doing it. Let's face it - we wouldn't be out Christmas shopping unless we thought we were getting something in return, right? You know it - it's that thought deep in the recesses of your mind while you plow through the lines on Black Friday. It's only natural to think so. By this time, every generation alive has been getting gifts for whatever winter holiday they choose to honor. From the time they are born - Baby's first Christmas - to the time they start having their own family, people expect gifts from their loved ones. When they do not receive them, there is disappointment. When they do get gifts, it's not exactly what they wanted, but they'll take it anyway, put a smile on their face and tell you they love it before they return the gift and get that thing they really want. Sometimes, they judge you by the gifts you're able to give. Even if it breaks you, maxes out your credit card, or makes you miss an important bill, that gift is important. It shows the family that you have something to bring to the table.
This is where our tradition starts - the table. The winter holiday was the most important when we began celebrating as a human culture. It was the start of a new year, when the winter was often harsh and unforgiving, and the family members that were still alive would gather with what they had stored for the winter to help each other continue on. Many times, it would involve a family feast - and every member of the family would bring something for the rest of them to eat. Those who did not have anything to bring to the table were seen as irresponsible, or selfish. By not bringing something to the table, it meant that others in the family had to compensate, or eat less than their fill.
We were also celebrating pagan gods during that time - gods of nature and the earth, the ones who controlled the harvest and the ones who controlled the weather. We also began sacrificing things - rare meats, foods, herbs, and more. The better the sacrifice, the better off you were in the eyes of the social organism. It became a status symbol. When food became more plentiful, and more easily obtainable, we turned to gifts. We stopped sacrificing meat, and started donating money to organizations that helped the poor through the tough times of winter - this happened first during the time of Rome, then again when Kings and Bishops ruled Europe.
Our holidays were created to align with certain changes in the seasons. Winter was the time of hibernation - we would give each other food to last out the remaining winter, and pray to whatever god we worshiped to see to our needs. There was a late-winter/early-spring celebration to commemorate our survival, and then Spring to honor life and the abundance of food. Early-summer/Late spring (May-July corridor) was reserved for honoring fertility and new life, as many new marriages or children would be starting their lives. After this came the celebration of early harvest - the early-fall/late-summer time, and then we would celebrate the harvest around the time of mid-late fall (October-November). Winter would set in, and the winter holidays would once again start. It was an easy routine to understand for people living with the land.
Religion had a massive impact on these holidays. Once food became plentiful enough for anyone to attain with the right ingenuity, or because they were living in the right climate zone, we needed new reasons to gather. At first, as I mentioned before, we celebrated feast days of our pagan gods - each one a representation of a different season or time of the year. As the Roman Catholic Church formed, they consolidated the holidays to the most important parts of the life of Christ - Christmas (Christ's Birth) and Easter (Christ's death and resurrection). The other holidays were put into perspective from there - Fat Tuesday (last day of the Christmas season and the beginning of Lent), Mother's Day (a feast day for Mary, mother of Christ), The Assumption (Mary's ascending into heaven), The Visitation (celebrating when the Angel Gabriel told Mary of her pregnancy), All Hallow's Eve/All Saints Day (the night and morning celebrating the passing of souls to heaven to become saints in the army of Christ). Every one of the holidays had their roots in pagan tradition.
Here's a link to each one of the holidays for verification:
Christmas
Easter
Mardi Gras
Mother's Day
Father's Day
Halloween
Others
So, why do I bring this up in a blog that tries to find the art in the commonplace of mankind? Quite simply put: They are the origin of the family tradition and have become symbols of our familial bonds. The art is in the image of the father carving the roast as his family waits eagerly for food; The mother slaving over preparations for a grand meal; The children dancing around the fire/Radio/TV/Video Games (depending on your time-line) as the elders enjoy seeing the youth abound. These are images paramount in our western civilization and culture. Norman Rockwell comes to mind, as does Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol. Whatever the root - whatever the image - the tradition remains alive in its new incarnation - a testament to our past struggles as a species on this unique world.
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