A midyear Christmas

This has been the most difficult year made even more difficult by our inability to gather with friends and loved ones. What type of Christmas will we possibly have without the attentions of grandparents or other family members (including their dogs) and the ability to hug our wise and respected relatives with abandon? Some might suggest that is no kind of Christmas at all. While presents sent in parcels may take the sting out of our loneliness, they are certainly no replacement for having a house filled with celebrants. And what sacrifices we have already made this year! No recess for children, no after-school activities with friends! No visits with uncles or aunts or grandparents at all!

Businesses are struggling along with so many. Restrictions pile upon restrictions. Parents talk about all kinds of boring things like Zoom and bandwidth or hypocrisy and politicians rather than more important matters such as scheduling play dates. It makes for quite a depressing scene. But there is always hope.

A smaller celebration is needed this year, with households keeping to themselves. No matter how tempting it might be to ignore the orders, this is what must be done if we are to beat this recent surge. Santa Claus has agreed to come next week and has assured all who can hear that he, the elves and the reindeer are all immune to COVID-19. He has also agreed to participate in worldwide discussions taking place for an additional Christmas later in 2021, tentatively scheduled for this summer when the numbers are better and more people can take the vaccine. But it is no small task.

There are logistics. Santa is accustomed to operating in the winter but is familiar with warm weather climates in the southern hemisphere during the typical Dec. 24/25 flights. Since his home base in the North Pole will be in midyear maintenance mode, the South Pole annex will have to be operated at full capacity and the present delivery will be in opposite order. There is also the matter of union negotiations but top labor officials are offering to assist in ensuring optimum present manufacturing and worker safety. And NORAD is working on clearing air space for the day of midyear Christmas so there are no midair accidents. The children of the Southern Hemisphere have offered online classes on sand snowmen construction (a summer Christmas tradition) to those in the Northern Hemisphere. The United Nations is determining the day in which such a celebration can take place with June 25 as the placeholder date. U.S. President-elect Joe Biden is considering a number of people to be appointed as our nation’s representative in the discussions worldwide and Dolly Parton is the only candidate for that task facing no resistance, even from the outgoing Trump administration.

As you can see, there are many moving parts and, while there is momentum growing now because of our current lockdown, it is not a certainty that such an event will officially take place once COVID-19 is under control, eradicated or it is otherwise safe to gather.

What is sure to take place, when the time is appropriate of course, is informal gatherings between friends and loved ones of all sorts. Birthdays, graduations, Mothers’ Day, Fathers’ Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Fourth of July, Labor Day, Diwali, Ramadan, Hanukkah, Memorial Day, Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah, Kwanzaa, Festivus, Presidents’ Day, St. Patrick’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Easter, Ice Cream Month, National Hot Dog Day, you name it. They can be celebrated all at once or separately once it is safe in whatever form we all see fit. We can make our own holiday that is brand new or that combines different ones together. Oh, what celebrations they will be, and that is the hope onto which we must hold. It will come soon enough, I assure you.

Jon Mays is the editor in chief of the Daily Journal. He can be reached at jon@smdailyjournal.com. Follow Jon on Twitter @jonmays.