I remember as a kid, it seemed like forever for Christmas to roll around the corner, yet it would fly by once the first gift was unwrapped. Nowadays, I find it sneaking up on me, surprising me like a hidden bill, like a huge exam you have limited time to prepare for, something that will inevitably happen, but you can wait. I’m sure many other struggling college students can relate to this feeling of stress. I will warn you—this article is brought to you by a holiday lover, a lover of all things festive, and focuses solely on the holiday Christmas, because of my own experiences.
As much as I’m an advocate for the time of year that’s decked in red and green, I know that isn’t the case for everyone. All holidays seem to call upon family to be there and for those of us lucky to have that luxury, it can be a wonderfully annoying time. For those that don’t have the privilege of being surrounded by family for a majority of reasons, holidays can be extremely painful. Celebrations mark special times in your life and make an imprint on your memory, for better or worse. Maybe you remember your Mom always insisting on making cookies with you and your siblings, and this year you didn't receive your annual "cookie-making" call. Loved ones pass away and the holidays often act as a reminder of what seems to be missing.
The financial crisis that Christmas has become in America is a disgrace. There is a pressure for parents to provide more for their kids than they were given, creating this cycle of an expectant generation (only getting worse). We ask for lists and letters to Santa, children are accustomed to the tradition of raining gifts. Six year olds that used to ask for Barbie dolls and Legos are now asking for iPads and touch screen trinkets they’ll get bored with. This puts enormous, unneeded pressure on the gift buyers (which is really anyone reading this article). The season of gingerbread and hot chocolate often signifies a sky-rocketing of credit card bills and debt—no wonder some folks are “Bah! Humbugging!” before the Christmas season is in full swing.
Some like to think all holidays are inventions created by corporations to make money, and while that seems to be the case of many, that idea isn't true about Christmas. Before the 19th century, this holiday focused mainly on religious connotations, and when Charles Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol he wrote it with the intent to make Christmas a holiday that focused more on family and generosity. Obviously, he succeeded, but corporations saw this newfound gift-giving tradition as a business opportunity and haven’t stopped riding the Christmas train since. Good businesses know that Christmas is a time for ample opportunity of profit, and would be silly not to take advantage of it. They exchange Halloween skeletons for Jolly Santas in stores the moment November 1st strikes—completely skipping over Thanksgiving (a holiday where the profits lay in the Turkey business). We get so outraged by this early celebration, and sometimes forget that we have a choice in the matter.
Okay, so you can’t avoid it completely, but there are a few ways to think about it. One: don’t buy the mini Christmas Reese's now, or ever, if you don’t want to. You don’t have to put Christmas lights up, or a tree. The bottom line is that you have a choice. Another option is realizing that Christmas is a holiday that comes once every 365 days, yet has a surplus of music and festivities to go along with it—so the earlier you want to get into the spirit, go for it. The most important thing to remember is to respect everybody’s feelings towards this holiday. As I’ve mentioned, there are real, valid reasons that Christmas doesn’t give people that warm, “fuzzy” feeling inside, and there are real, valid reasons that it does. Don’t try to change anybody’s mind about how they think! So, when is it okay to go “all out Christmas?” Whenever the heck you want (if at all)!
