International Day of Persons with Disabilities – December 3
“My advice to other disabled people would be, concentrate on things your disability doesn’t prevent you doing well, and don’t regret the things it interferes with. Don’t be disabled in spirit as well as physically.”
– Stephen Hawking
“Just because a man lacks the use of his eyes does not mean that he lacks vision.”
– Stevie Wonder
Pearl Harbor Remembrance – December 7
“Seventy years ago today, a bright Sunday morning was darkened by the unprovoked attack on Pearl Harbor…We salute the veterans and survivors of Pearl Harbor who inspire us still. Despite overwhelming odds, they fought back heroically, inspiring our nation and putting us on the path to victory.” President Barack Obama
“Pearl Harbor caused our Nation to wholeheartedly commit to winning World War II, changing the course of our nation’s history and the world’s future.”
– Joe Baca
Human Rights Day – December 10
“Freedom means the supremacy of human rights everywhere. Our support goes to those who struggle to gain those rights or keep them. Our strength is our unity of purpose. To that high concept there can be no end save victory.”
– Franklin D. Roosevelt
“Our hopes for a more just, safe, and peaceful world can only be achieved when there is universal respect for the inherent dignity and equal rights of all members of the human family.”
– UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
“Where, after all, do universal human rights begin? In small places, close to home – so close and so small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. … Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere. Without concerned citizen action to uphold them close to home, we shall look in vain for progress in the larger world.”
– Eleanor Roosevelt
National Cocoa Day – December 13
“At no other time has Nature concentrated such a wealth of valuable nourishment into such a small space as in the cocoa bean.”
– Alexander von Humboldt
“Fourteen out of every ten people love chocolate.”
– Unknown
“Warning -chocolate may make your clothes shrink!”
– Unknown
Winter begins December 21
“I wonder if the snow loves the trees and fields, that it kisses them so gently? And then it covers them up snug, you know, with a white quilt; and perhaps it says, ‘Go to sleep, darlings, till the summer comes again.’”
– Lewis Carroll
“December’s wintery breath is already clouding the pond, frosting the pane, obscuring summer’s memory.”
– John Geddes
“The problem with winter sports is that – follow me closely here – they generally take place in winter.”
– Dave Barry
Christmas – December 25
“Christmas is built upon a beautiful and international paradox; that the birth of the homeless should be celebrated in every home.”
– G.K. Chesterton
“Freshly cut Christmas trees smelling of stars and snow and pine resin—inhale deeply and fill your soul with wintry night.”
– John J. Geddes
“Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most.”
– Ruth Carter Stapleton
”I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he handles these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.”
– Maya Angelou
“I stopped believing in Santa Claus when I was six. Mother took me to see him in a department store, and he asked for my autograph.”
– Shirley Temple
Kwanzaa begins December 26- January 1
“Kuumba – To do always as much as we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.” – One of the seven Kwanzaa principles
“The holiday, then will of necessity, be engaged as an ancient and living cultural tradition which reflects the best of African thought and practice in its reaffirmation of the dignity of the human person in community and culture, the well-being of family and community, the integrity of the environment and our kinship with it, and the rich resource and meaning of a people’s culture.”
– Dr. Maulana Karenga
National Chocolate Day – December 28
“There is a simple memory aid that you can use to determine whether it is the correct time to order chocolate dishes: Any month whose name contains the letter A, E, or U is the proper time for chocolate.”
– Sandra Boynton
“Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands – and then eat just one of the pieces.”
– Judith Viorst
“My therapist told me the way to achieve inner peace is to finish what I start. So far, I’ve finished two bags of M&Ms and a chocolate cake. I feel better already.”
– Dave Barry
New Year’s Eve/New Years December 31/January 1
“Many years ago, I made a New Year’s resolution to never make New Year’s resolutions. It’s been the only resolution I’ve ever kept!”
– D.S. Mixwell
“Youth is when you’re allowed to stay up late on New Year’s Eve. Middle age is when you’re forced to.”
– Bill Vaughn
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – January 17
Quotes from MLK, Jr.
“Forgiveness is not an occasional act. It is a permanent attitude.”
“Faith is taking the first step even though you don’t see the whole staircase.”
“Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’”
