Thankful for the Freedom to Celebrate

Last night was the first night of Chanukah. 

With the cool air and short days of winter come the warm feelings of the holidays. While not all people have a winter holiday to celebrate, I feel lucky to live in a place where holidays can be recognized, celebrate and embraced by entire communities in public spaces. In the age of political correctness I find that many places go overboard in attempting not to offend individuals. There are offices that forbid Christmas trees, malls that refuse menorahs or nativity scenes and stores that have requested that a greeting such as “Happy Holidays” not be shared by their staff.

During my lifetime I have had many encounters with people that offered me a holiday greeting long past Chanukah (the holiday often falls earlier than Christmas due to the use of a lunar calendar), I’ve received hundreds of Christmas cards and delighted in the Christmas Blend served by Starbucks each year. Am I offended by the lack of awareness to my Jewish heritage? Am I irritated by the public celebration of a religious holiday? No, rather I am grateful.

I am thankful that we live in a country that encourages diversity. I feel blessed to live in a community where I can listen to Jingle Bells on the radio, light a menorah in my window and appreciate that there are many other celebrations by dozens of other cultures in December and throughout the year.

Jewish people were fortunate to be among the founders of this great country and the freedom of religion that we experience here is a story that has been told since the early 1800’s. A legend exists of a speech between General George Washington and one of his young soldiers. In the legend, General Washington comes across the young man lighting Chanukah candles and is re-inspired by the tale of the Chanukah story.

Whether this tale comes from historical roots may be up for debate, but our freedoms are not. Last night, with hundreds of other Jews and non-Jews, I celebrated the first night of Chanukah. Not behind closed doors and in hidden spaces like many of my relatives once did in Paris and Russia, but rather in one of the most public spaces in Silicon Valley, Santana Row.

I wish you all a Happy Chanukah, Merry Christmas, Happy Kwanzaa and a beautiful New Year!