--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A holiday is when you celebrate something…" description: "\"A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up, that happened a long time ago and now there's nothing left to celebrate but the dead...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a75/abraham-polonsky-26369_celebrate_a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-somethin_1188964.png" --- # A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all… ![“A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up, that happened a long time ago and now there's nothing left to celebrate but the dead.” quote by Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a75/abraham-polonsky-26369_celebrate_a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-somethin_1188964.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a75/abraham-polonsky-26369_celebrate_a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-somethin_1188964.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a75/abraham-polonsky-26369_celebrate_a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-somethin_1188964.png) > “A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up, that happened a long time ago and now there's nothing left to celebrate but the dead.” [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A holiday marks the end of something past, leaving only memory of loss to honor. **In simple terms:** Celebrations can become reminders of endings and loss. Key Takeaway Recognize grief in rituals. Themes memory loss rituals Mood reflective somber Type cultural philosophical When to use this quote - family gatherings - national commemorations - personal anniversaries Key Concepts nostalgia mortality collective mourning Questions to Reflect On - How do you honor what is gone? - What can you learn from past endings? A Different Perspective Some holidays may also foster denial or avoidance of present issues. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Holiday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holiday/) ## Related quotes > [A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-something-that-s-all-finished-up/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [Grow some more weed and get medicated, everyday is a holiday so we celebrate it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wiz-khalifa/grow-some-more-weed-and-get-medicated-everyday-is-a-holiday-so-we/) [Wiz Khalifa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wiz-khalifa/) > [“Why should we celebrate These dead men more than the dying? It is not to ring the bell backward Nor is it an incantation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-eliot-2/why-should-we-celebrate-these-dead-men-more-than-the-dying-it-is-not/) [T.S. Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-s-eliot-2/) > [Celebrate the happiness that friends are always giving, make every day a holiday and celebrate just living!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-bradley/celebrate-the-happiness-that-friends-are-always-giving-make-every-day/) Amanda Bradley > [Pi Day is the perfect holiday to celebrate with friends you don't have because you celebrate Pi Day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/pi-day-is-the-perfect-holiday-to-celebrate-with-friends-you-don-t/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Christmas is a holiday that we celebrate not as individuals nor as a nation, but as a human family.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronald-reagan/christmas-is-a-holiday-that-we-celebrate-not-as-individuals-nor-as-a/) [Ronald Reagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronald-reagan/) > [My wife and I made a pact a long time ago we really don't give gifts on holidays. We figure if it's coming from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-herman/my-wife-and-i-made-a-pact-a-long-time-ago-we-really-don-t-give-gifts/) [Tom Herman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-herman/) > [It is a mischievous notion that we are come late into nature; that the world was finished a long time ago. As the world…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/it-is-a-mischievous-notion-that-we-are-come-late-into-nature-that-the/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [A long time ago when I was very little, I dreamed about being on stage. Some people told me I would never be able…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-potter/a-long-time-ago-when-i-was-very-little-i-dreamed-about-being-on-stage/) [Lauren Potter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-potter/) > [I have been on only one reality show, which was a dance show, a long time ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mukul-dev/i-have-been-on-only-one-reality-show-which-was-a-dance-show-a-long/) [Mukul Dev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mukul-dev/) > [“A long time ago I realized that, as psychiatrists, we had to have a healthy respect for our own humanness, and our own smallness…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lori-schiller/a-long-time-ago-i-realized-that-as-psychiatrists-we-had-to-have-a/) [Lori Schiller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lori-schiller/) > [“Sylvia Plath and I met a long time ago. A really long time ago. Was it a summer day? No! It was a wintry…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/avijeet-das/sylvia-plath-and-i-met-a-long-time-ago-a-really-long-time-ago-was-it/) [Avijeet Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/avijeet-das/) > [I was sober for five years a long time ago and was just bored out of my tree.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-sheen/i-was-sober-for-five-years-a-long-time-ago-and-was-just-bored-out-of/) [Charlie Sheen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-sheen/) > [I agreed a long time ago, I would not live at any cost. If I am moved or forced away from what I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/i-agreed-a-long-time-ago-i-would-not-live-at-any-cost-if-i-am-moved/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) ## More by Abraham Polonsky > [Kids win this'n'that every day. Thousands of them. One out of a hundred fights professionally. One out of a thousand's worth watchin', one out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/kids-win-this-n-that-every-day-thousands-of-them-one-out-of-a-hundred/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [Indians don't last in prison. They weren't born for it like the whites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/indians-don-t-last-in-prison-they-weren-t-born-for-it-like-the-whites/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [It's perversion. Don't you see what it is? It's not natural. To go to great expense for something you want, that's natural. To reach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/it-s-perversion-don-t-you-see-what-it-is-it-s-not-natural-to-go-to/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [If you don't get killed, it's a lucky day for anybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/if-you-don-t-get-killed-it-s-a-lucky-day-for-anybody/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [Directors are like generals, political dictators, aggressive people...And everyone in the film is always grateful if you can tell them what to do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/directors-are-like-generals-political-dictators-aggressive-people-and/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [I want to be a fighter. So fight for something! Not for money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/i-want-to-be-a-fighter-so-fight-for-something-not-for-money/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [First of all, directing is an idea that you have of a total flow of images that are going on, which are incidentally actors,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/first-of-all-directing-is-an-idea-that-you-have-of-a-total-flow-of/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [Twenty years ago I wanted tomove to a nice place so our Charley would grow up a niceboy and learn a profession. But instead…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/twenty-years-ago-i-wanted-tomove-to-a-nice-place-so-our-charley-would/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [This is Wall Street, and today is important. Because tomorrow, July 4th, I intended to make my first million dollars--an excitingday in a man's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/this-is-wall-street-and-today-is-important-because-tomorrow-july-4th/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [What are you gonna do? Kill me? Everybody dies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/what-are-you-gonna-do-kill-me-everybody-dies/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [Money has no moral opinions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/money-has-no-moral-opinions/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-something-that-s-all-finished-up/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [I don't take no dive for nobody. Whaddya think I am, a tanker!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/i-don-t-take-no-dive-for-nobody-whaddya-think-i-am-a-tanker/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [I'll kill you with my own hands rather than let you put the mark of Cain on my brother!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/i-ll-kill-you-with-my-own-hands-rather-than-let-you-put-the-mark-of/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) > [Twenty years ago I wanted to move to a nice place so our Charley would grow up a nice boy and learn a profession.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/twenty-years-ago-i-wanted-to-move-to-a-nice-place-so-our-charley/) [Abraham Polonsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) [Explore all 22 Abraham Polonsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/) ## More Celebrate quotes > [Companies with cultures that celebrate diverse opinions and encourage the exchange of ideas have an advantage when solving difficult problems. A company that doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/doug-mcmillon/companies-with-cultures-that-celebrate-diverse-opinions-and-encourage/) [Doug McMillon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/doug-mcmillon/) > [Spiritually, life is a festival, a celebration. Joy is of the essence of life;](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnivesh/spiritually-life-is-a-festival-a-celebration-joy-is-of-the-essence-of/) [Agnivesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnivesh/) > [We need to discover all over again that worship is natural to the Christian, as it was to the godly Israelites who wrote the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-i-packer/we-need-to-discover-all-over-again-that-worship-is-natural-to-the/) [J. I. Packer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-i-packer/) > [Like a child exploring the attic of an old house on a rainy day, discovering a trunk full of treasure and then calling all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-h-peterson/like-a-child-exploring-the-attic-of-an-old-house-on-a-rainy-day/) [Eugene H. Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-h-peterson/) > [Trying to find this industry's tendency to celebrate the physical is a waste of time. So I'm happy to play the game. But I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olivia-wilde/trying-to-find-this-industry-s-tendency-to-celebrate-the-physical-is/) [Olivia Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olivia-wilde/) > [On Valentine's Day, couples in Calgary can celebrate their love for each other with couples' nude yoga - great way to get in shape…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-sagal/on-valentine-s-day-couples-in-calgary-can-celebrate-their-love-for/) [Peter Sagal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-sagal/) > [A society that presumes a norm of violence and celebrates aggression, whether in the subway, on the football field, or in the conduct of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-h-lapham/a-society-that-presumes-a-norm-of-violence-and-celebrates-aggression/) [Lewis H. Lapham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-h-lapham/) > [No matter what day we celebrate Australia Day, let's celebrate it together and give thanks to the original inhabitants of this vast country. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-barnes/no-matter-what-day-we-celebrate-australia-day-let-s-celebrate-it/) [Jimmy Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-barnes/) > [I'm not so much in the future as always in the present. The future always takes care of itself. What I do now with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonas-mekas/i-m-not-so-much-in-the-future-as-always-in-the-present-the-future/) [Jonas Mekas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonas-mekas/) > [Birth, life, death is a cycle. And they're all beautiful, you celebrate all of them. Animals do grieve, but they move on. That's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-millan/birth-life-death-is-a-cycle-and-they-re-all-beautiful-you-celebrate/) [Cesar Millan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-millan/) > [I just wanted to jump into the stands and start celebrating with those wonderful fans. (on reaching the Champions League final)](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-gerrard/i-just-wanted-to-jump-into-the-stands-and-start-celebrating-with/) [Steven Gerrard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-gerrard/) > [What I have found is, so much of that is like a Chinese finger trap: the more you play to the dark, the more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amanda-palmer/what-i-have-found-is-so-much-of-that-is-like-a-chinese-finger-trap/) [Amanda Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amanda-palmer/) > [Undeniably, character does count for our citizens, out communities, and our Nation, and this week we celebrate the importance of character in our individual…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/undeniably-character-does-count-for-our-citizens-out-communities-and/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [While we celebrate our diversity, what surprises me time and time again as I travel around the constituency is that we are far more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jo-cox/while-we-celebrate-our-diversity-what-surprises-me-time-and-time/) [Jo Cox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jo-cox/) > [I feel like the downfall of any person is the second an artist starts celebrating their work themselves, that becomes problematic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/questlove/i-feel-like-the-downfall-of-any-person-is-the-second-an-artist-starts/) [Questlove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/questlove/) Browse all 2,313 Celebrate quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up, that happened a long time ago and now there's nothing left to celebrate but the dead.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Abraham Polonsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-something-that-s-all-finished-up-that/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Celebrate" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-something-that-s-all-finished-up-that/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a75/abraham-polonsky-26369_celebrate_a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-somethin_1188964.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a75/abraham-polonsky-26369_celebrate_a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-somethin_1188964.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a75/abraham-polonsky-26369_celebrate_a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-somethin_1188964.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A holiday is when you celebrate something that's all finished up, that happened a long time ago and now…” — Abraham Polonsky", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Abraham Polonsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-polonsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A holiday is when you celebrate...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-something-that-s-all-finished-up-that/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-polonsky/a-holiday-is-when-you-celebrate-something-that-s-all-finished-up-that/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```