Does anybody read these?

Technical Difficulties...

...So, I sat down with a cup of tea in my favorite christmas PJs to do my Christmas cards. I have three boxes of cards to choose from. I pick my favorite of the bunch. I am sending cards all over the world and these have a global message and are simply beautiful. I go to open the box. And I re-read the message. And I have a problem.

My Christmas cards are grammatically incorrect.

I am trained in the English language. Some of the toughest grammarians in the United States have taught me all I know. In college I was the person you always asked to proofread your stuff. At every job I've ever had there have been folks who refused to send their mail out until I read it for them. Half of my co-workers have given me red pens as Christmas presents this year.

Now, how can I send out grammatically incorrect Christmas cards? I have an image to protect. I bought a sympathy card once for one of my PR buddies. The message was perfect. And I took it back to Hallmark because on the quote by Thomas More, they misspelled it Thomas Moore. I am a stickler for good grammar.

So here I am with these cards. I love them, but the mistake is really bugging me. I am worried what folks will think if I send them out. In reality, no one will probably ever notice. It's easily one of the top 5 usage mistakes in the English language. So I doubt anyone would say a word.

(And who really says anything if they get a grammatically incorrect card anyhow? OK, I probably would. But who else would, really?)

So, they are beautiful cards with a lovely message of hope and peace. They say Christmas instead of "holiday" (although more on that later!). They are great cards. And I just don't know if I can send them. My biggest issue is that it IS a common mistake, and I just don't feel like as a grammarian that I should encourage it. I thought that maybe since I write my cards in red anyhow, I could correct it with proofreaders' marks. Let's face it; people would almost expect it from me.

I am torn. Any suggestions?

posted by Laura at 7:34 PM