Richard T. Stanley

America's Favorite Holidays Richard T. Stanley

Many of America's favorite holidays, including Christmas, Easter, Halloween, and Valentine's Day, originated far beyond our shores and long before our Founding Fathers were born. Some holidays, including Thanksgiving Day, the Fourth of July, Flag Day, Labor Day, Lincoln's Birthday, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Memorial Day, President's Day, Veteran's Day, and Washington's Birthday, were uniquely grounded in America's past. New Year's Day has become a feast of college football bowl games. Still others, such as Cinco de Mayo, Columbus Day, and St. Patrick's Day, are largely the products of America's rich ethnic and cultural diversity over time. And some have a very personal and specific purpose, such as Mother's Day and Father's Day. America's favorite holidays provide us with much more than opportunities to simply goof-off or spend money. Celebration, commemoration, contemplation, and remembrance are powerful forces that stimulate us to become better people, to enjoy life more, and to be more productive over time. Therefore, Happy Holidays! everyone.