Christmas: Day 2 (Boxing Day)

"On the second day of Christmas, my true love gave to me, two turtle doves..."

Many fellow-travelers in the Catholic blogosphere have seen the video of the á cappella group Straight No Chaser singing "The Twelve Days of Christmas." Well, it's not available now, due to a copyright claim by a third party. One cannot imagine who is still alive to claim the rights to a several-hundred-year-old folk carol. But no matter, since here at mwbh, we have the next best thing. Hurray for Bollywood!

Today is "Boxing Day" in Canada, the UK, and other nations of the Commonwealth. On Christmas itself, the master of the house would give presents to his family. On the following day, he would arrange for leftovers from his great feast to be given to his domestic staff in boxes that they could take home. Eventually, it became customary to box other gifts as well. In any case, they get another day off. So, here's a shout to our friendly neighbors to the north, with a very helpful explanation of the feast, courtesy of a Canadian garage band (well, it kinda looks like they're in a garage, or maybe their parents' basement, whatever...) known as the "Holiday Hipsters," singing "Carol of the Boxing Day."

This could double as this week's Friday Afternoon Moment of Whimsy, eh?

(Meanwhile, the Irish celebrate this as a national holiday, too, only as Saint Stephen's Day.)
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