Saturnalia for Everyone

Here are the outtakes of the Christmas card photos. We chose the one that best represented the true personality of the girls, complete with a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. I wish I could send out the perfect family portrait where everyone is photogenic, but that would not be "us". "Us" is slightly off, but real.

While watching a sitcom the other night, I learned that the Christmas tree is a byproduct of a pagan holiday called Saturnalia, which was celebrated on December 17th. The appropriate spelling of this holiday is varied, as is the link of the tree to the holiday, but thanks to the internet I have deemed it true. And, when I worked as an accountant in the '90s, I knew a guy who told me that the tree was a pagan symbol and he provided me with the same info I heard on The Big Bang Theory, so there.

In the true spirit of acceptance and tolerance and equal opportunity for all holidays, I say Happy Saturnalia to all of you. Without out it, there would be no Christmas trees. Without Martin Luther, there would be no lights on the trees. Without the Wise Men, there would be no tradition of gift giving. And without my mother, there would be no yummy food on Christmas Eve. I love each and every one of these things, plus Jesus, so thank you Jesus and pagan tree cutters and Martin Luther and Wise Men and Mom.