A Charlie Brown Christmas

First and foremost, this post is not for those of you who are so politically correct in your life you won’t read “To Kill a Mockingbird” because of its colorful language, wave the American flag because it might offend somebody or say the Pledge of Allegiance because of the words “Under God.” I am not PC and never will be. We have lost our identity as Americans due to political correctness and I for one am sick of it.

But the most PC thing I hate is people not being allowed to say Merry Christmas. In every corporate press release over the past few years, everyone from Starbucks to Target said they will no longer say “Merry Christmas” to its patrons so as not to offend anyone. Why? What’s offensive about Merry Christmas?

It’s a cordial greeting between people to celebrate the festive time of year. It’s not a declaration of war, slang or a swear word. If I went into a Jewish Deli, ordered a pastrami on rye and the cashier said “Happy Hannukah” to me, I wouldn’t be offended or upset. The same with “Happy Kwanza” or “Merry Winster Solstice” either. These are terms of affection by people who want to be a little bit kinder and spread some good feelings of the holiday with it.

Every Christmas, you’ll find one more school that doesn’t allow Santa Claus to be seen anywhere in the classroom or allow candy canes to be passed out because of their religious basis. Have we become a society where we let every little thing offend us? It’s beyond ridiculous how people go out of their way not to be offensive with things that would never be considered offensive in normal society.

I don’t mean to get political here, but I hear from many of my liberal friends and family how we should emulate Europe more in education, social practices, etc. Really? In Europe, they have CHRISTMAS markets and CHRISTMAS displays with the Nativity and Santa EVERYWHERE without any worry of being sued. In Europe, schools sing CHRISTMAS carols and put on CHRISTMAS pageants, with the Three Wise Men and Baby Jesus.

As a writer, I love the old TV specials and cartoons about Christmas because they are so open and frank about the love, the joy and the spirit of the holiday with no apologies necessary. It’s why I love to write. I want to be as frank and open with my imagination within my novels. That’s why “A Charlie Brown Christmas” will never get old to me. Linus speech about the true meaning of Christmas is so touching and so powerful that it resonates with me even today.

So if someone says “Happy Holidays” to you as you pick up your Peppermint Mocha Latte, wish them a Merry Christmas. It’ll brighten your day and maybe theirs too. Merry Christmas!

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase at Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The Dark Tides is available for purchase at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse. The Outlander War can be previewed at Inkitt.