Merry Christma- um, Happy Holidays

We had a lovely Christmas. It was our second Christmas in London, just my husband and me. Which I suppose can sound sad and lonely, if Christmas to you means a house full o' kids and grandparents and neighbors. But there is something peaceful - and romantic - about Christmas spent as a couple, in a foreign country, far away from family obligations. (Don't get us wrong, we love our families and friends, and a good portion of the day was devoted to phone calls to the States.)

We woke up late, then breakfasted on that rarest of North American treats - proper buttermilk pancakes, with real maple syrup. Pancakes here are sad affairs, more like a French crepe than a griddle cake. But thanks to Costco, which is virtually identical on both sides of the Atlantic, we were able to whip up Krusteaz's finest. We exchanged presents, from the ridiculous - wine gums and Hobnobs - to the sublime. Our local pub was open Christmas afternoon, so we took the chess set and found ourselves a perch, drinking winter Pimms and eating mince pies while chasing rooks and pawns up and down the board. Then we rambled around Holland Park with our camera, taking photos of black bunnies and incandescent peacocks and the special Christmas Day guest star, a blue heron. Then home to prepare dinner: turkey and stuffing from the butcher; brussels sprouts, roast potatoes and cranberries from the greengrocer; champagne from the wine shop. All bought within a two block radius of our flat, and all of amazing quality.

I made pumpkin pie for dessert. I tried to save time by using storebought pie crust and, well, that was a mistake. Although the pie tasted fine, it certainly wasn't deep dish, or even medium dish. Still, it was an improvement over the last time we ate pumpkin pie in London, at the Ritz - that was whipped cream sprinkled with nutmeg served over a thin scraping of pumpkin puree.

In all, it was a Christmas to remember. A time to recharge and relax, to spend time together as a couple, to reflect and plan. Christmas in London is lovely not because of the decorations - for the most part, the British don't decorate their home exteriors (that's too gauche and, well, American) and the lights in the West End shopping district pale next to any US civic center with an ounce of pride - but because it is so quiet. No public transportation. No open businesses. I don't know what non-Christians do on Christmas because there are zero options other than sitting at home and watching the Queen's speech on the telly. No going to the movies and eating take out Chinese - the Dec. 25 tradition kept by nearly all my Jewish friends (and a lot of my Christian ones as well).

Which leads me to the recent hoop-de-doo over whether one should say "Merry Christmas" or "Happy Holidays" when addressing people you don't know well. I read about the Wal-mart flap, with picketers demanding that Wal-Mart stop using the generic "Holidays" in favor of the specific "Christmas" on their in-store signs. Some Brits are also up in arms over which greeting to use; it was a topic of conversation on BBC Radio London and the subject of at least two editorials in the Times. The Brits came down heavily on the side of "Merry Christmas," with the various reasons including a) the UK is a Christian country, with a head of state who is also the head of the Church of England; b) Political correctness is an American virus that needs to be rooted out in the UK; c) December 25 IS Christmas, after all, it's a factual statement and you're just wishing them a pleasant day.

I'm going with "Happy Holidays."

Why? Are I some godless heathen? Some politically correct namby-pamby?

No, not really. It's because I am a Christian. And Christmas Day is the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ, the human son of God, born of Mary. It is a holy day, and while the presents and the food and the decorations are lots of fun, they're not what the day is about.

But I am aware that not everyone believes in Christ. Or even if they live in a household where Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny leave presents every year, they might not have made the very personal and intimate choice to have a deeper relationship with God. That's cool. I'm so not a proselytizing evangelical. Makes me break out in hives.

And the tree and the stockings and the wrapping paper and the fat guy dressed in red: those are pretty swell traditions. They're fun. More power to those who want to celebrate them. And now that I live on a northerly latitude I totally get why the ancients brought greenery inside the house and lit Yule logs - the days are dark and dreary, with sunrise at eight a.m. and sunset at four p.m. Christmas lights and mulled wine and hot mince pies make a short day almost preferable - the sooner the sun sets, the sooner the lights glow, the more inviting the pub looks.

But while these are trappings of Christmas, they're not really Christmas.

And not everyone celebrates Christmas. Get over it, Wal-Mart protestors. You live in a country founded on the principle of religious freedom, a country that rejected the establishment of a state religion.

Christmas can't be bought in a store. Christmas isn't a generic greeting to be handed off to one and all. "Happy Holidays" is so much more appropriate in a commercial and general social setting.

I don't want to be wished a Happy Rosh Hashanah or Happy Eid or Happy Diwali. Not because these are worthless, nothing celebrations - they're not. They are very important, very significant days. But they are not my holy days.

Why should those to whom these are the most holy days of year be wished a Merry Christmas? Why should those who don't have any religious beliefs be wished it as well?

Shouldn't "Merry Christmas" - as an expression of well wishes - be saved for those who revere Christ and commemorate his birth?

And shouldn't "Happy Holidays" - or "Season's Greetings" - be used for the commercial frenzy that, as fun as it all is, is rather incongruous as the celebration of a humble birth in a lowly stable? Not to mention that "Happy Holidays" is also a statement of fact - after all, New Year's is just a week later, and it also encompasses Hanukkah and Kwaanza.

I honestly don't get what there is to protest.

Or am I missing something?