What's With the Holiday Stamps?

[KaraKW]

I was looking at the holiday stamps online this evening and was a bit perturbed by their holiday stamp selection. The only Christmas stamp available is religious in nature -- an image of Mary and Jesus. That's nice and all, but I was hoping for a more secular theme, like Christmas trees, wrapped gifts, or Santa. Oh, well, maybe I'll just buy their snowman stamp and be done with it.

 

[abaldacci]

not I bought snowmen

 

[Meriweather]

I bought the snowmen.
someone in our town designed one of the fugures that was used
And....they are cute!

 

[Sal]

There are two Christmas stamps this year. (as usual) The snowman stamp (with four designs of snowmen) is one of the Christmas stamps.

I actually like it as much or better than others in recent years.

 

[cinmell]

I was able to buy snowmen stamps.

 

[Pin Wizard]

Don't they usually offer one religious and one secular? Looks like the secular is snowmen this year.

 

[LuvN~Travel]

They do traditionally offer just two, and this years 'secular' one
is the snowmen. I think we all got a little spoiled when they
offered a third a few years back. (the blue midnight angel).
I have some customer who love the snowmen, and some who don't.
But, then that's the way it usually turns out.
Hang in there until next year.
Kim

 

[KaraKW]

Snowmen are considered a symbol of Christmas? I thought they were just a symbol of winter in general.

 

[caitycaity]

i have to agree with kara -- i don't really see snowmen as a christmas thing.

 

[KaraKW]

I just checked USPS.com. Only one stamp has "Merry Christmas" written on it -- and that's the one with Mary and Jesus. The snowman stamp doesn't have any greeting on it at all, so I'm assuming it's a generic winter stamp, and not a "Christmas" stamp.

 

[PamOKW]

The snowmen are truly secular for winter -- they could be used for any of the holidays (Christmas, Hanukkah or Kwanza) or for non-holiday mail.

I'm wondering what the EDI commemorative stamp is all about. What is EDI?

 

[Dan Murphy]

http://www.theeid.com/ Islam

 

[SeaSpray]

Personally, I like the "snowmen" stamps because I don't celebrate Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hannukah, or any winter holiday, yet I like the idea of a general, seasonal stamp like that. I think the postal service did a good job of trying to offer something for everyone.

 

[PKK/MJK]

I think having a Snowman as a secular winter stamp is a nice idea. It gives people who celebrate Hannukah and Kwaanza etc a stamp they can use-- but I would like to see a secular Christmas stamp too. There are people who celebrate Christmas only from a secular standpoint--in terms of Santa and family--rather than from the religious "birth of Christ" point of view.

 

[Sal]

All of the stamps mentioned above are officially "Holiday" stamps. The USPS generally issues a religious and secular stamp and has in recent years issued stamps commemorating Kwanza, Hannukah, and EID. The design on the last three stamps has not changed, though.

The secular "Christmas" stamp has not always been just for Christmas, as with Santa, etc. There have been wreaths, deer, and others that were more "Winterish" than Christmas.

I like this year's choices, but my favorite was the Midnight Angel we had a few years back.