On December 26, the world celebrates the Day of Gifts, the Day of “Letters of Thanks” and the Day of Whining.
On December 26, 1941, Sir Winston Churchill first used the two-fingered “V” gesture to declare a desired victory.
December 26, 1982 “Man of the Year” according to the magazine Time became a personal computer.
Gift Day
Boxing Day is always celebrated the day after Christmas. This holiday has its roots in the English tradition, where it was originally a day when the wealthier classes gave gifts or offerings to their servants and the less well-off. In the past in England, servants worked on Christmas Day preparing feasts for their masters, but on December 26 they were given a day off, along with boxes containing gifts, leftover holiday food or money. There was also a tradition in churches to open donation boxes collected during Christmas and distribute these funds among the needy.
Today, Boxing Day remains popular in the Commonwealth of Nations, including Great Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It has become a day of big sales and sporting events, and for many it is just an opportunity to spend time with family or friends.
Interesting facts
In Great Britain, this holiday is also associated with traditional sports, such as horse racing and football matches, which add a special flavor to the festive atmosphere.
In Australia, the famous Sydney-Hobart regatta, one of the most prestigious sailing races in the world, will start on this day.
Boxing Day used to be an official holiday in South Africa, but since 1994 it has been renamed Charity Day.
In Canada, this day is considered one of the best days for shopping, thanks to significant discounts that can even surpass Black Friday.
Although the day is not officially celebrated in the US, its influence is felt in border regions through Canadian neighbors and massive sales.
Day “Letters of thanks”
Every year on December 26, the United States celebrates National Thank You Letter Day. This holiday is dedicated to expressing gratitude and writing letters of thanks, which become a symbol of sincere recognition of good deeds and attention.
Thank You Letters Day has a simple but extremely important purpose: to remind people of the power of gratitude. It originated as part of the Christmas season, when gifts received, good deeds and care deserve sincere words of thanks. It’s also a great opportunity to slow down after the hustle and bustle of the holiday season and pay attention to those who made your Christmas special.
On this day, people take sheets of paper or special postcards and write words of gratitude to their relatives, friends, colleagues or even strangers who have become part of their good memories. Such letters after Christmas are especially important to express gratitude for gifts and good deeds. Some families make it a shared tradition, even involving the children. Writing letters by hand adds a special value and soulfulness to them, because in the age of digital technologies, such messages have a unique character.
Interesting facts
The first “thank you letters” appeared as early as the Renaissance, when people expressed their gratitude for gifts and favors through elegant handwritten notes.
Writing “thank you letters” helps to improve the psychological state of both the writer and the recipient, because gratitude is one of the key factors of happiness.
In today’s world, handmade or self-decorated postcards are becoming a popular trend, which adds uniqueness to the words of gratitude.
Research shows that the tradition of expressing gratitude helps strengthen relationships and promotes better understanding.
In many countries, this day turns into a way to popularize the culture of gratitude, which is important not only during the holidays, but also in everyday life.
Whining Day
Every year, the world celebrates an unusual and ironic holiday – Whining Day. Despite its name, this day does not encourage complaints at all. On the contrary, its purpose is to draw attention to the little things about which we often complain, and to teach us to see the positive even in the least expected things.
Whining Day falls at a time when post-Christmas emotions are still at their peak, but disappointment often comes with them: gifts are not what you wanted, too much money was spent, and family gatherings, instead of joy, cause fatigue. That is why the holiday was born as a reminder that gratitude and a positive attitude are more important than material things or ideal scenarios.
The main idea of this day is to recognize one’s own weaknesses and at the same time try to look at them with humor. Complaints that seem serious at first glance become funny if you take them lightly. Whining Day calls us to realize how often we let the little things affect our happiness.
Interesting facts
This holiday was founded by Thomas Roy, known for his love of humorous holidays. He created it to remind us of the need to appreciate life and be happy even in the little things.
December 26 was chosen because this day often becomes the peak of complaints after Christmas: because of unnecessary gifts, wasted money or family quarrels.
The main tradition of the holiday is to admit your tendency to whine, but turn it into a joke and feel how silly it sometimes is.
In some cities, meetings are organized where people jokingly share what they “want to complain about”, creating a positive atmosphere.
The point of this day is not to judge whiners, but to help them find a more optimistic outlook on life.
Historical events on this day
1776 year George Washington’s troops won a decisive victory over the British near Trenton. This battle was a turning point in the struggle of the North American colonies for independence.
1783 year – the Frenchman Sebastien Lenormand for the first time in Europe demonstrates an invention that became the prototype of a modern parachute.
1805 year – a peace treaty was signed between France and Austria in Pressburg (now Bratislava). This agreement officially ended the War of the Third Anti-French Coalition.
1870 year – the construction of the first railway tunnel under the Alps was completed – the 13-kilometer Fréjus tunnel, which connected Italy and France.
1898 year – Pierre and Marie Curie discover radium – one of the key radioactive elements, which became an important discovery for science.
1908 year – in Sydney, Australia, Jack Johnson, defeating Canadian Tommy Burns by knockout in the 14th round, became the first African-American world heavyweight boxing champion.
1918 year – the restoration of the Ukrainian People’s Republic (UNR) was announced, and a government – the Council of People’s Ministers of the UNR – was formed.
1919 year – the government of the Ukrainian People’s Republic recalled the Ukrainian mission from the Paris Peace Conference, which was an important political step.
1931 year – Dat Jidosha Seizo automobile company was founded in Tokyo, which was renamed Nissan the following year.
1935 year – in the Hawaiian Islands, an attempt was made to stop the eruption of the volcano with the help of air bombing.
1946 year – the Flamingo Hotel, built by the famous gangster Bugsy Siegel, opened in Las Vegas.
1963 year – the Capitol Records company released the first single in the USA by the legendary group The Beatles, which included the songs I Want to Hold Your Hand and I Saw Her Standing There.
1991 year – The National Bank of Ukraine officially registered Expobank as the country’s first commercial bank.
2004 year – the coast of South and Southeast Asia experienced one of the most terrible disasters of the 21st century – a powerful earthquake and the resulting tsunami. This natural disaster is the third strongest earthquake since 1900, it killed more than 220 thousand people and left thousands injured.
2004 year – a second round of presidential elections was held in Ukraine, in which Viktor Yushchenko won.
The “V” gesture: a symbol of victory, peace and ambiguity
On December 26, 1941, Sir Winston Churchill first used the gesture of raising two fingers in the shape of the letter “V”, declaring the desired victory (Victory). This gesture quickly spread among the countries of the anti-Hitler coalition and became a powerful symbol of resistance and hope during the Second World War.
British corporation BBC supported this gesture by launching the “V for Victory” campaign. Within its framework, the sound symbol of the letter “V” was created using Morse code (three dots and a dash). The opening bars of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, which have the same rhythm, became a musical call sign BBC in programs on the territory of occupied Europe. Educated listeners also recognized in these notes the “motif of fate” “knocking on the door” of the Third Reich, which added symbolism.
The Nazis tried to adapt the “V” gesture to themselves, adding laurel leaves to images of the letter and placing the symbol on walls, vehicles and even the Eiffel Tower. However, such “stealing” of the symbol could not reduce its original value for the resistance movement.
Despite its positive meaning, the “V” gesture has a mixed history. Before the First World War, in Great Britain it meant “shut up”, and in Australia, if you show it with your back to the interlocutor, it is considered an insult. Even famous figures like George W. Bush and Churchill himself have made mistakes by using a gesture with the wrong orientation, causing a negative reaction.
The historical roots of the gesture go back to the Hundred Years’ War, when English archers teased the French by holding up two fingers, which were often cut off, so they could no longer shoot their bows.
The symbolism of the “V” also has a mystical aspect. According to Masonic interpretations, this gesture can symbolize the politics of division (“divide and rule”) or “devil’s horns”. In the religious traditions of Spain, two fingers pointing up are associated with the triumph of evil, while pointing them down symbolizes the victory of good and keeping the devil in hell. To this day, some Spanish Catholics consider it necessary to point the fingers downward immediately after awakening.
The “V” gesture got its peaceful meaning in the 1960s thanks to the hippie movement, which used it during protests against the Vietnam War. It became a symbol of peace and friendship, especially during the signature hippie greeting “Peace”.
In Poland, the sign was used during the fight against communism, and during the Yugoslav wars, it was used as a military salute by the Bosnian and Croatian military. In Vietnam, the “V” gesture has become a way of greeting due to the consonance of the number 2 with the English “hi”. In Turkey, however, the gesture has political implications and is linked to support for the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, and its use can lead to imprisonment.
This simple gesture became not only a symbol of victory and peace, but also a reflection of the complex history of mankind, in which culture, context and politics give ordinary things multifaceted meanings.
A personal computer became the “Man of the Year”.
December 26, 1982 American magazine Time made a revolutionary choice: instead of awarding the title of “Person of the Year” to a specific person, this award was given to… a personal computer. This decision became a symbol of recognition of the enormous impact that technology has begun to exert on human life. The editors of the magazine explained their choice by the fact that in 1982 it was the personal computer that had the greatest impact on society, business and everyday life.
This moment became a turning point in the perception of the role of technology. Computers, which until then were used mainly in large companies and scientific institutions, began to become available to ordinary users. It was the beginning of an era that changed communication, work, education and entertainment.
Since then, the influence of personal computers has not only not diminished, but continues to grow. They became the foundation for the development of other technologies, such as smartphones, the Internet and cloud computing. In particular, the COVID-19 pandemic has proven how dependent humanity has become on technology: remote work, online education, telemedicine – all this has become possible thanks to computers. However, it is interesting that the pandemic as a phenomenon was not awarded the “Person of the Year” award.
Looking into the future, we can assume that by 2030 the title of “Man of the Year” may well be given to artificial intelligence. Like the computer in 1982, AI is gradually becoming an integral part of life today, influencing everything from household solutions to complex medical developments and the global economy. Similar to the personal computer, artificial intelligence becomes not just a tool, but a factor that radically changes the idea of humanity about the future.
