Hey, Holiday Fans!
Well, another bright Christmas season has come to an end. As sung in a song popularized by The Carpenters, “Greeting Cards have all been sent, the Christmas rush is through.”
The only thing left now is New Year’s Day, right? Wrong. The next holiday after Christmas is right now. Today! It’s Boxing Day. Recognized in many commonwealth nations like Canada, England, South Africa, and others, Boxing Day in today’s world is essentially an extended Christmas Day.
It’s the day where you check out the presents that you unwrapped yesterday and eat the food that you ate yesterday. It’s a day for hangin’ around the house, being lazy, and wondering, “what now?” Though it seems right up our alley, the U.S. does not celebrate this holiday.
So what in the heck is Boxing Day?!
That’s a question that’s easier to ask than it is to answer (mainly because there is no answer). There are a couple different ideas on the subject
The first idea is taken from the Christmas carol, Good Kind Wenceslas. For those familiar with the song, you’ll note that King Wenceslas spots a poor man gathering firewood in a snowstorm on St. Stephen’s Day (December 26). According to the song, the king brings the man food and wine and brings him to his home.
Another idea is that the holiday originated from the old tradition in which employers and the upper class gifted their servants and employees presents (in boxes). The employees and servants would then go home to have a second Christmas of sorts with the boxes they received from their employer.
In any case, Boxing Day started out as a day in which the poor were gifted by the rich. Nowadays it’s more so a day for watching sporting events and eating leftovers. Happy Boxing Day, everyone.
- John