According to the United States Postal Service schedule of holidays, there are ten holidays a year that are considered "Federal holidays". Federal holidays are those holidays recognized by the Federal government and on which non-essential government offices are closed. Banks and stock exchanges generally close as well. Every four years the inauguration of a new president brings the number of Federal holidays that year to eleven.

New Years Day (January 1) is the first holiday of the year. Since New Years Day is a holiday celebrated by many people in the population, and since it follows the New Years Eve celebration many people enjoy, it should be, and remain, a holiday.

Martin Luther King Jr's Birthday is remembered each year on the third Monday in January, although Dr. King's birthday was actually January 15. The commemoration of the birth of this influencial civil rights leader is a holiday for which legislation was enacted (in 1983) only after much controversy about whether the day should be a holiday. Honoring the man who did so much to move Black Americans away from the gross inequalities and injustices of the past would seem to me a fair and reasonable thing to do.

Inauguration Day (January 20 every fourth year). The day on which a new president is sworn is recognized as a holiday in Washington D.C. and parts of Virginia and Maryland. This is a matter of reducing traffic conjestion on such an eventful day.

While Abraham Lincoln's birthdaywas once one holiday (February 14) and George Washington's birthday (February 22) were once celebrated at two separate holiday, today we celebrate Presidents' Day as one holiday, the specific date of which changes in order to celebrate Presidents' Day on a Monday in February. I, personally, think it was entirely reasonable to celebrate the birthdays of George Washington, general in the Revolutionary War and the nation's first president; and Abraham Lincoln, 16th president in office during the time of the Civil War, and remembered for The Emancipation Proclamation (ending slavery); having the two holidays so close together led to combining them and celebrating, instead, President's Day.

In view of the role of both President Washington and President Lincoln, I believe these two holidays should be holidays, should remain holidays, and, in fact, should be celebrated beyond having sales at car dealerships in the name of Presidents' Day.

Memorial Day, celebrated on a Monday at the end of May, is most definitely a holiday which should be one and remain one. Memorial Day is the day on which Americans honor the nation's war dead, as well as remembering deceased veterans of wars. Although this day has become associated with backyard barbeques and pool parties, Memorial Day remembrances and parades are dedicated to the war dead, with tributes and visits to war memorials and cemeteries.

Independence Day, which is celebrated on July 4 (and often referred to as, "The Fourth of July") is the celebration of the nation's birth, when the Declaration of Independence was signed and nation became an independent nation. The independence of the 13 original colonies was won as a result of the Revolutionary War. Independence Day is a day of great celebration and, for most people, deepest patriotism. Many people find Independence Day to be their favorite holiday. The nation's birthday should, of course, be a holiday and remain one.

Labor Day. (The first Monday in September.) Labor Day is a holiday dedicated to working Americans, as a tribute to their contribution to the well being, strength, and prosperity of the nation. The first Labor Day was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5 1882 in New York, as planned by the Central Labor Union. In 1884 it was proposed that the first Monday in September be dedicated to the American worker each year. As labor organizations grew, the holiday was later celebrated across the country. Americans today see Labor Day as "the official end of summer", and the three-day weekend Labor Day brings allows for activities from family get-togethers to finishing up home repairs. The idea of celebrating American workers, who have built the nation, is a reasonable one; and since Independence Day is the only holiday of summer, it seems reasonable to have one additional summer holiday before autumn begins. Many Americans have only two or three weeks' vacation a year. Adding the extra summer holiday, again, would seem reasonable in view of that.

Columbus Day. Columbus Day was declared a holiday in 1937, by President Roosevelt. The holiday was to commemorate Christopher Columbus, who, in 1492, embarked on a voyage to "The New World", which would mark the beginning of further exploration and colonization of the Americas. Although there has been controversy over Columbus' role in the exploration and colonization of the land by Europeans, it is generally agreed upon that Columbus' discovery of the land was a turning point in history. The era of exploration and colonization of land in America is obviously significant in American history, and so, in my opinion and in spite of any controversy surrounding Christopher Columbus or later exploration, the holiday should be and remain a holiday. In 1971 the holiday was changed from October 12 to the second Monday in October, which gives Americans one more three-day weekend each year.

Veterans Day (November 11). Veterans Day is a day to remember and honor all of the nation's veterans, living and deceased. In view of the fact that all veterans have given their time to the nation; and in view of the fact that many veterans have suffered tremendous loss in one way or another in their service, as well as risking and losing their lives for their country; most people agree that having one holiday a year on which to honor the nation's veterans is not only reasonable, but very important. Veterans Day should be and remain a holiday.

Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November. Although, throughout history, many cultures have associated crop harvest with gods; American Thanksgiving is associated with the Pilgrims, who sailed from England in 1620, and landed in Plymouth, Massachusetts. After devastating sickness, death, and brutal New England winter, the Pilgrims are said to have celebrated the succesful harvesting of the warm-weather crops with a feast.

In 1863 President Lincoln proclaimed that the nation should celebrate the fourth Thursday of November as a day of giving thanks. Thanksgiving is a family holiday, when families (and guests) enjoy a holiday feast and just a day of having family together. The holiday is a reminder that we need to take time to think about what there is to be thankful for in life, and it should remain a holiday. Any holiday that promotes closeness within families and thinking about what one has to be thankful for, and any holiday for which warm, inviting, decorations remind Americans of their predecessors, the Pilgrims, is a reminder of some of the more important things in life, as well as an opportunity to spend time with family.

Christmas. (December 25) Many of the traditions associated with American (and non-American) Christmas date back thousands of years. An excellent link to the history of Christmas traditions ihttp://www.holidays.net/christmas/story.htms. With roots in festivals and rituals related to the new year, the winter solstice, gods, warding off evil spirits, and even belief in trolls; winter festivals/traditions were celebrated by a number of different cultures. As Christianity spread, Christians were opposed to the pagan celebrations and tried to end them, without success. Christians then "converted" the meaning of the winter celebrations so that it would be associated with the birth of Christ. As a result, the celebrations and festivals that were once considered "pagan" could be, instead, considered, "holy".

Christmas in American has, throughout history, generally been associated with the birth of Jesus Christ, although, much to the dismay of many devout Christians, non-Christians often celebrate this major American holiday with emphasis on family traditions and the idea of "peace on Earth".

While Christmas remains an important holy day (and holiday) for devout Christians, it also plays a major role in the lives of many other Americans as well. It is seen by those who celebrate it as a beautiful holiday (regardless of what it means to each person), and it remains a time when dark winter nights are illuminated by sparkling lights. A family dinner, gifts, decorations, and Christmas music are part of Christmas for most people, as are giving to charity, doing special things for the needy, and Christmas presentations and performances. Religious services remain an important part of Christmas for people of various religions, while people who do not belong to a religion often find the focus on family, gift-giving, charity, music, and peace on Earth heartwarming and special. Even some Americans who don't necessarily share Christian beliefs about Jesus Christ may recognize that this was someone who had a powerful and important role in teaching right from wrong, and peace, in a more primitive world; so even they may believe that having a holiday that celebrates the birth of Christ is a reasonable thing to do.

In view of the fact that winter festivities, rituals, and celebrations have taken place as far back as 4000 years ago; and considering that much of the world celebrates Christmas, Christmas should be, and remain, a US holiday. Whether Americans choose to see Christmas as a winter holiday that, like Americans themselves, is a "melting pot" of different beliefs and traditions; or a religious holiday just for Christians; Christmas time is a time that gives people a chance to have some beauty, sentiment, tradition, and even a little magic take center stage in life - and so Christmas is good for the soul.

As one looks at the list of American holidays, it is clear that some holidays in America are about people who have had powerful impact on the lives of others (both in their time and for generations to come). They are also about family traditions and closeness. American holidays are about the nation's history, the people who have served the nation, the principles on which the nation was founded, and appreciation for others or for the ways in which we have been fortunate.

Our holidays include beautiful or festive decorations, music, introspection, small and large gatherings, thoughts of family and friends, and days when companies and government agencies close in order that people have time to celebrate with their families.

One of the things I found most delightful about American holidays is the way so many Americans seem to share them, not just with their own circle of family and friends, but with every other American. Before Christmas it can seem as if every other car on the road has a tree tied to its roof. Before Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and the Fourth of July, flags spring up on homes and in downtown areas across the country. Memorial Day, the Fourth of July and Labor Day bring crowds to the grocery stores, and everyone seems to buying the same kinds of foods in stores that are decorated in red, white, and blue. Thanksgiving time brings traditional orange pumpkins and fall flowers to so many doorsteps, as well (of course) as filling the baking items aisle in the grocery store.

American holidays are about American families, American history. They're about sacrifices made on our behalf and on behalf of the nation, and they're about appreciation of who we are, how blessed we have been, and what so many of us have in common. They are about what has been, and remains, important to Americans both as individuals and as a nation; and so, I vote to keep all the holidays we have (even if that ever-bothersome Christmas season can at times be pretty stressful).