Christmas is a comin' and the geese are getting fat, please put a penny in the old man's hat. If you haven't got a penny, a half-penny'll do. If you haven't got a half-penny, then God bless you. So why am I starting a post with a nursery rhyme we probably heard as kids? Simple, for the first time ever I am going to write about what I think about Christmas. Most of my family know that I am not a big fan of the holiday, but I have never fully outlined my feelings.
I will start with the fact that America, in spite of what FOX news may say about a war on Christmas, the reason that Christians celebrate the holiday has become nothing more than an orgy of commercialism. What should be a sacred holiday where we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior and look to reflecting on what Christ's life and sacrifice mean to our world has little to do with Christianity. Instead, it is a non-stop commercial and greed fest. Everyone is so hung up on getting the best deal, finding the perfect gift and stuff that the true meaning is lost.
I readily admit that the loss of my Grandfather a few weeks before Christmas when I was 12, has colored my feelings on the holiday. I know that my mother did the right thing in us carrying forward with celebrating, as best we could, in order to bring some normalcy to what was anything but a normal situation. I know that our loss what nothing unusual or special, but it just showed me that there is a lot of loss and sadness that is magnified by the whole forced "Jolliness" of the season.
Loneliness and depression are magnified during the holidays as well. People feel the false pressure to spread joy and happiness, even if they don't feel that way. This leads to people to the uncomfortable situation of having to fake the holiday spirit or withdrawing from them all together.
I have come to accept that mine are the minority views and do my best to just try and direct my own actions toward what I know are the important parts of the season. Doing for others. Keeping family at the forefront, and making sure that I keep the birth of Christ a part of my holiday.
