Happy Christmas and a determined New Year

Somehow it does not seem quite right to post my last blog for the ‘naughties’ with the words: “Have a happy Christmas and prosperous New Year.”

I am prepared to nail my colours to the mast and hope that the true meaning of Christmas shines through the busyness and commercialism at this time of the year. So the “Happy Christmas” bit of the greeting gives me no problem.

The bit that seems at odds with the traditional words looking forward to 2010 are the words “a prosperous New Year.” A leading public health doctor has called on the profession to take a lower wage in order to improve the health of those less well off. The government has announced that all NHS staff will in effect take a pay cut as it seeks to bail the country of its worst financial crisis in peacetime. And this comes at a time when many staff may well find themselves out of a job as NHS budgets are cut to the bone.

Pressures on ‘productivity’ will only increase. Budgets will decrease. We are destined for austere times and a prosperous New Year seems an ambitious target, political or otherwise.

So what words of greeting can I offer as a substitute? A ‘pleasant’ New Year is pretty bland, although might perhaps be achievable. A ‘relaxing’ New Year hardly sounds promising, and a ‘determined’ New Year would not be appropriate for those keen to get away from it all by flying British Airways.

Whatever alternative greeting is used is fraught with difficulty. What would you use? I have struggled with this one and then came across this quote by H.L. Mencken written in 1949 in his book Chrestomathy. “Puritanism. The haunting fear that someone, somewhere may be happy.”

Perhaps wishing you all a prosperous New Year is not so bad after all. So have a good one!

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