Christmas, it is a magical time of year. At least until you grow up.
I grew up in your typical middle class family in Southern Ontario during the 80's and I didn't have much to complain about this time of year as Santa always came with a good sized sack of loot. It wasn't until my later years the stress and debt that Santa endured annually so that my brother and I could be surrounded by copious amounts of junk became abundantly clear. As I grew up, got married and started my own family, I can see behind the scenes of Christmas and I think Santa has been eating to cope which has led to his health issues. Poor guy.
I don't know when the uber commercialization of Christmas started, but I think I seem to recall it beginning with the addition of American big box stores to the Canadian retail sector during the early 90's. Since Wal-Mart, Home Depot and Best Buy, among others, started cropping up everywhere like corner stores, competition has become stiff. Canadian retail chains have expanded rapidly and, in some cases, moved to the big box format in an attempt to compete. To top it off, Christmas sales and decorations start showing up around Halloween so retailers can get first dibs at the throngs of keen shoppers. "Get out of my way Halloween, I'm Christmas, make room for my crap". Eventually the Christmas Season will be hanging in stores year round, just like Christmas lights that never seem to get taken down.
Each and every year, like migratory birds, the unwashed masses go through the ritual of spending countless hours trekking through malls searching for 'that perfect gift'. Why do we all feel the need to spend time we don't have, buying stuff we don't need for people we love using money we don't have? I just don't get it and I never will. We are brainwashed from day one that this is the way it is and we all stoke the flames of the capitalist fires.
As I remember, isn't it 'tis the season to be jolly....not indebted and stressed? I view Christmas as a time for joy and family. We should make the best of the time we have with our loved ones for the most precious gift we can give them is free, it's ourselves. To put it all in perspective, if a natural disaster came and took your stuff, would you be looking for your 50" Plasma TV or would you be looking for your family? I would hope the latter and if you don't agree, you are selfish and have serious life priority issues, please seek counselling. I personally would look for my family first and then for a decent 50" TV that would be laying amongst the ruins.
As the real meaning of Christmas is chipped away, revealing the materialistic buying frenzy fueled by North American greed I become more jaded and bitter each and every year. Having stated that, I still do think there is a lot of magic remaining. As a kid, the excitement of gifts and the arrival of Santa was simply the most exciting thing all year and as and adult, I love to see my kids feel the same, taking me back to those days of innocence and happiness. I feel so satisfied when the kids rip the paper from the presents and their eyes sparkle with amazement. That is Christmas encapsulated into a split second that makes everything else disappear and makes it magical again.
In the end, it's not about stuff, it's about the simple things in life.
Finally, I wish you a Merry Christmas and non of the other PC bull that has been accepted by society over the last decade so that 'others' won't feel excluded because "Christ" is in the name of the holiday. If I start seeing calendar's with the 24th as "Seasonal Eve" and the 25th as "Seasonal Day" I will snap and people should look out ;-)
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