CayceP at Daily Kos has a nice post about working on Christmas. It’s not only hospitals that stay open 24/7. There are good and bad things about being drafted to work when everyone else is cheery and jolly.
I remember a Christmas Eve at First Unitarian Church when Tom Ahlburn was minister and we observed the occasion by changing the light bulbs in the chandelier. Tom had a unique approach to liturgy.
After the chandelier was back on the ceiling we sought a restaurant that would be open, and quickly found the sign turned on in the Gourmet House. All the spicy lemongrass you could eat.
The following April, worn out from a session at H&R Block, I walked to a Thai restaurant down the street, only to find it closed. They were celebrating their New Year.
God bless America. And God bless all the workers who keep things going, 24/7/365.
Kmareka.com 
Working in acute residential care for adolescents on the holidays had its own particular challenges. Naturally many of these kids struggle with feeling orphaned, and the holidays can often serve to magnify those feelings. Still there were some good moments, some times where it felt the kids were learning that they could have a supportive experience anytime, anywhere, regardless of other negative environmental circumstances.