One of the most difficult times of year to fill this space is the week preceding Christmas. The world around us tends to shift into neutral at this time of year. Politicians go on holidays, schools focus on concerts with an eye to a break for the season, even hospitals try to ensure everyone gets to go home to spend time with families.
The issues which normally provide fodder for editorial writers dry up, leaving us staring at a blank page.
So, we usually turn to writing about the 'true meaning' behind the season. That may seem like a very cliched topic, and for a time thoughts of avoiding it danced in this writer's head like the famous sugar plums of Christmas lore.
After all it's a somewhat daunting task to add anything new to the discussion about what Christmas is supposed to mean. Let's face it we are all aware that Santa Claus as we now envision him was a visage initially created to sell soft drinks.
And as much as it means our individual loss of innocence, we know reindeer can't fly, and that Frosty never really came to life.
So while television specials tell the fairy tales of the season, and advertising entices us to focus on the giving of gifts to bolster store profits, maybe it remains important for editorial writers to remind there is more to the season than an advertising icon in a red suit and a pile of gifts we'll still be paying off on our credit cards come Canada Day.
One thing we might want to remember locally moving forward is that while Christmas is a Euro-centric holiday based in Christian beliefs, it is not the sole vision of the holiday season.
Yorkton is becoming much more an ethnic mix of people as a new wave of immigration is bringing people from around the world, some of whom will not share the predominant Christian viewpoint.For those of the Moslem, Hindu, Shinto and numerous other faiths, Dec. 25, is not a day of celebration. That is something we need to be aware of. Celebrations such as Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and Ramadan, and Yule on the Winter Solstice are equally important for some.
Yet, within the diversity of faith, of viewpoints, or holidays, there is a common theme which transcends the labels of religion.
It comes down to a hope, a desire, a faith, that we as people can aspire to the highest ideals of what being human should be all about.
All faiths at their core hold out hope for peace on earth, for full bellies for all, for the freedoms to pray as we see fit. That is what the season is about.
Deep down we all know that, should all desire that, and for at least a few days at this time of year, we bring those thoughts to the forefront. As we sit in our places of worship, or gather with family and friends for a festive meal, we collectively think about the old adage of 'peace on earth and good will to all'.
So as cliched as it may be, that is this newspaper's hope for this season once more. May we all remember why we pause to celebrate this season on our own ways, and get to the core of what it means, and this year may we carry that beyond the holidays and make it a year-round reality for all.
