It is my prerogative to say Merry Christmas

The Christmas Season has and always will be an extraordinary time of year for me. With the Christmas Season comes hope. This hope is the key for getting through difficult times and providing the inner desire as well as the strength to do the right things, for the right reasons.

During the Christmas Season we witness people going out of their way to help the less fortunate. We see people acknowledging strangers with a warm smile and a special greeting. Most importantly however, we watch in amazement as the me-first attitude subsides for a period of time. Before our eyes, we observe the Christmas Season evolving into a Season of Hope.

There are some individuals that don't, or won't, see this special time of year as a Season of Hope. They will suggest that I'm only pursuing my personal agenda and they will find it offensive that I'm using the term Christmas Season rather than Holiday Season, Winter Vacation, or some other newly coined phrase. The truth be told, I'm probably infringing on their personal agenda. In all likelihood, these are the same individuals that want In God we trust removed from our currency. These are the same folks that want …one nation under God removed from our Pledge of Allegiance. These may very well be the same people that were so insistent on removing prayer from our schools.

No doubt, I will receive some letters criticizing me for not being politically correct, and that's okay. Personally, I believe all this political correctness is causing friction and turmoil among otherwise caring and compassionate people. As I see it, it's their prerogative to criticize me for not being politically correct. However, I'm not forcing my beliefs on them. So, why do they feel compelled to impose their beliefs on me?

Our country has more serious problems to contend with than creating conflict about putting up Christmas decorations instead of holiday decorations; eating Christmas cookies instead of eating holiday cookies; going Christmas shopping and wrapping a Christmas gift instead of doing some holiday shopping and wrapping a holiday gift; and worst of all, instructing department store sales people and cashiers to say happy holidays and avoid saying Merry Christmas.

We need to step back and take a hard look at where we are today. We are living in a difficult period of time. Our economy is in need of revitalization. An unemployment rate of 9.1% is unacceptable. Every day we witness people losing their homes. Time and again, we hear about bad things happening to good people, through no fault of their own. So what do we do? We point the finger at the other person and place the blame on him or her. The Republicans caused this. The Democrats run this country into the ground. Wall Street and the Federal Reserve created this havoc. And let's not forget the banks, the unions, and of course big business for the loss of jobs.

Regardless of what others may think or say, this Christmas Season holds the promise of peace and hope. It all starts by taking time to count our blessings. No matter how rich or poor we may be, we need to remember we live in the greatest country in the world and we enjoy a standard of living and personal freedom about which the rest of the world can only dream. Finally, we need to believe that the hope of a better tomorrow is not up to the actions of others. Rather, it is contingent on our interactions with others today.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

tgrasson@gie.net