Maybe it’s just me, but over the last few years I have grown to hate the holidays.
I have never been a huge fan of Thanksgiving and Christmas - I’m more of a Halloween person - but I’ve never had much of an issue with either.
You know, aside from the fact that we’re celebrating rape, genocide and cultural erasure on one, and on the other, we are feeding into greed and consumerism in the name of Christianity.
But all of that is beside the point. I used to look forward to the holiday season, but now it’s more of something that I just want to get over with.
As I’m writing this, my family is out Black Friday shopping. On Thursday night. It was like we were all trying to get through our Thanksgiving dinner so they could go stand in line for hours to start shopping for something that is still a month away.
It’s funny how on the same day we celebrate how thankful we are for what we have, we go out to buy things we don’t really need with money that we don’t have.
Growing up has made me much more aware of these unorthodox traditions, and it has really taken a toll on my holiday spirit. It’s hard to be excited for something when you know how much stress and anxiety it brings to the people you love and care about.
I have only been home for two days now, and all everyone has been talking about is shopping for Christmas. Up until now, I hadn’t put much thought into it. But now, it’s all I can think about.
How much do I spend on everyone? Where will I get the best deals? Who do I need to shop for? When will I have time to shop? Will everyone like what they are getting?
When you’re a kid, you don’t have to worry about buying gifts for everyone. You don’t have to wonder what to buy for your family, your friends, your boyfriend. All you have to do is make a list for Santa and hope that he likes the cookies you left out for him.
As you get older, the facade disappears. It's not about waking up in the morning to run downstairs to find your presents, it's about praying that everyone likes what you spent all of your money on.
It is easy to say that the holidays aren’t just about the presents - but how many people actually stand by those words and don’t give gifts to their loved ones?
The holidays should be about spending time with your family, but even that can be stressful - especially when everyone gets together.
It’s always great to listen to those distant relatives you see once or twice a year critique your life choices, like “You’re still not eating meat?" or my personal favorite, “Journalism? Do you want to be broke?”
Even spending time with your closer relatives can be stressful. By Christmas day, everyone is finally winding down from that inevitable “holidaze” that takes over, but things aren’t quite back to normal.
It’s like when you finish your final exams, but you still have to wait for the results. The season isn’t over yet - you just have to get through that last day.
That’s the problem with the holidays - we just want to get through them. It all becomes a blur of rushing to make everything perfect for just one day. As much as I’d like to enjoy the holidays, it’s hard not to get caught up in the politics of it all.
All we can do hope that this holiday season passes quickly and painlessly. And, of course, we should try to make the most out of the most wonderful time of the year.
And by wonderful, I mean anxiety-inducing, bank-draining, mentally-taxing, chaotic mess.
