Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays or Seasons Greetings...

Usually I do not like to talk about religion, but today I will touch on the subject a little.

Contrary to popular belief, I am not Christian. So I do not celebrate and have never celebrated Christmas. When I was in high school and university, some friends invited me over to their house for a Christmas dinner or party. So, I have attended a few Christmas Parties before. However, I never had a christmas tree in my house, and never ate a Christmas dinner or drank eggnog in my house, and Santa never came to my house with the reindeer and his sled. But since I have lived in Japan, I usually celebrate Christmas by going out to a dinner or eating a special dinner in my house. This year I will do the latter with my wife. Also, I got her a Christmas present for the first time, so I will give that to her tonight. I hope she likes it!!

In Japan, many people often say "Merry Christmas," and some people even send sweet "Merry Christmas" emails or cards. In fact, I have already received a few from some people and they made me happy. However, in other countries, especially America, many people say or send cards with "Happy Holidays" or "Seasons Greetings" instead of "Merry Christmas." The reason for this is that not everyone is Christian, thus not everyone celebrates Christmas. Most Japanese are not picky about religion at all. Depending on the event, they usually visit Temples or Shrines, two totally different religions. Temples are from Buddhism. And Shrines are from Shinto. For funerals, many Japanese use Temples. For Marriages, some Japanese use Shrines. Other Japanese get married in Churches!! Many Japanese also "celebrate" Christmas. For the New Year, some people visit Shrines and other people visit Temples, to be honest I sometimes forget which is for what...It is very confusing!!! :)

Anyway, and most importantly, I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas or Happy Holidays or Seasons Greetings!! Please choose whatever expression you like the best!
Also, I wonder what these two kids got from Santa for Christmas?! If they were good this year, not naughty, maybe Santa gave them a nice gift!!