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Tonight as you count down to midnight, if you’re wondering why we picked such a completely random date to celebrate as the New Year—neither solstice nor equinox nor anniversary—take a moment to thank the folks of Segeda, Spain, a town that stood near present-day Zaragoza. Celtiberia Up until the 2nd century B.C., the Roman civic calendar began in mid-March, around the spring equinox and the beginning of the planting season; officials convened in Rome on the full moon (Ides) …Read more 
December 30 Polyglot: 1. A person having a speaking, reading, or writing knowledge of several languages. 2. A book, especially a Bible, containing several versions of the the same text in different languages. 3. A mixture or confusion of languages.
Today the people of the Philippines mourn the death and celebrate the life of their national hero Jose Rizal. “I die without seeing the sun rise on my country. You who are to see the …Read more December 28 & 29 December 28th and 29th are the 3rd and 4th days of Kwanzaa. The themes of these days are Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility) and Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics). On the surface these do not sound like the general feel-good (or feel-bad) sentiments that accompany most holidays. For the record, other days of the celebration include themes such as Unity, Purpose, and Faith–themes more consistent with older holidays. Ujima and Ujamaa may be overshadowed by these …Read more 
December 26 – January 1
God makes three requests of his children: Do the best you can, where you are, with what you have now. – African-American Proverb Originally intended as an Afrocentric alternative to Western holidays in the United States, Kwanzaa is now celebrated by people of African heritage in Europe and the Caribbean as well as by millions in Africa itself. The term Kwanzaa comes from the Kiswahili phrase “ya kwanzaa” …Read more 
December 26 St. Stephen “In London and other places, St. Stephen’s Day, or the 26th of December, is familiarly known as Boxing-day, from its being the occasion on which those annual guerdons known as Christmas-boxes are solicited and collected… The Book of Days As a child I thought it odd that the British, so seemingly refined (compared to us their American cousins), would dedicate the day after Christmas to such a brutal and …Read more 
December 25 Behold! the angels said, ‘Oh Mary! God gives you glad tidings of a Word from Him. His name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honour in this world and the Hereafter, and in (the company of) those nearest to God. – Qur’an 3:45 Nativity, Gerard von Honthorst (1590-1656) Today we celebrate Jesus Christ’s 2011th birthday. Actually, no. We don’t know the year Jesus was born. But it’s believed he …Read more 
December 24 ‘Twas the night before Christmas And all through the store Not a register was empty Nor an inch of the floor For the men of the nation Had converged on this spot To buy all the presents They should’ve already bought. Today my co-workers complimented me on my resistance to all the goodies lying around the office. It wasn’t resistance; it’s just that at this point my body weight is …Read more 
December 23
On this day in 1783, the most powerful man in the Western Hemisphere, the Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the United States who had achieved independence from Britain, the world’s strongest superpower, voluntarily surrendered his sword and his title to the Continental Congress in Annapolis, Maryland. He returned to his home in Mount Vernon, Virginia, expecting to live a quiet farm life. His plans were derailed a few years later when he was …Read more |
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