Christmas- 'tis the season to be jolly and deck the halls with balls of holly, but you know what this season is also for? Talking about the stuff no one talks about just because it's Christmas, such as:
1. Christmas tree deforestation
Every year around Christmas time, you see Instagram, as well as other social media platforms, riddled with pictures of people going to shop for their fresh pine trees to serve as their Christmas tree. Yet no one talks about the that fact that those trees are better off being planted in an open lot or field to help rebuild the millions of forests we have cut down to feed our consumerism.
2. Over consumption due to consumerism
The fact that millions, maybe billions, are spent each year during this holiday season alone never seems to come up either. The fact we dedicate an entire week to shopping for gifts, on what we think is a discounted price, goes unspoken of because, well, who doesn't want presents? Yet if half of the money spent on gifts was spent on planting and maintaining the trees we aren't cutting down, rebuilding forests would be much more possible.
3. The pressure for people to get engaged
As the holiday approaches, people take it as a sign to start dropping hints to their partners to pop the question and get down on one knee. In the case that the couple who has been together for a long time show no interest in getting married, family members take it upon themselves to start dropping hints that 'tis the season to get engaged, not to mention all the advertisements on TV for jewelry stores and their engagement ring specials.
4. The pressure to be in a relationship period
If you are single, the holiday season is a nightmare on social media. With posts of couples doing cute things, like giving each other exaggerated gifts, going out on cute dates, or just overdoing the public display of affection, it's hard to feel like you are being left out of the holiday joy. Even if you have more fun as a single person during the holiday season, the pressure to be in a relationship is real. So much so that family members that you see twice a year always feel the need to ask why you don't, or when will you, have a partner. Social media takes it a step further and makes memes to show how miserable you must be for being single. There is nothing wrong with being single during the holiday season, as long as your happy, that's all that really matters.
5. Social issues that are still being ignored
This may be the most important thing on the list, and it is only heightened during the holiday season. Every year around Christmas, everyone seems to forget major social issues happening in our nation, as well as around the world. Issues like the tragedies happening in the Middle east and other war-torn parts of the world, or the millions of people being harassed for being minorities, women, or just being different in general. These are big things that need to be addressed.
'Tis the season to get things done!
