It’s that time of year again, the one where the world gets in the way and ruins everything; the ever so revered Holiday Season. It’s no wonder so many have a tough time handling life from the end of October until January 2nd; there is so much pressure from so many directions and the persistent messages are conflicting.
Retailers and media hyp join forces and collide with sanity and common sense. After all, what’s the purpose and meaning of it anyway? Given the opportunity, the retailer-media team will psych the entire country into believing there is no excuse for being dressed like a normal person on October 31st., a feast to beat all feasts must be prepared and served to an army on November 28th, and credit cards should be charged up enough to rival the national debt or no one is going to have a happy Christmas. To top it off, New Years Eve is to be celebrated with all that glitters, stretch limos, and champagne that flows flows flows! Yet, we must not drink and drive, so figure that one out. Obviously, we are expected to stay in a nice hotel close by the party and take a cab. It’s the final expense of the season; the ever so responsible cab ride to the swanky hotel we can no longer afford because we just struggled through another Holiday Season.
Can’t you just feel yourself getting stressed? My shoulders are up to my ears as I write this. Profanities are pacing around in my head waiting for the opportunity to fly out of my mouth and assault someone. Yet, I firmly believe it’s our own fault this is allowed to happen. My point being, we allow it. We actually watch television, pay attention to the advertisements, listen to the radio adds, discuss plans with our peers such as what we’re planning to cook and buy and for whom and then feel guilty if it isn’t, by someone else’s standards, enough! Like any of this is going to matter two weeks later.
To make matters worse, with all the craziness, we tend to say things we normally wouldn’t. All the effort to make everything just right usually ends up making things so wrong. Families end up arguing about stuff they would normally let slide, friends feel slighted and take offense to who knows what, and short circuits and stupidity cause house fires. The stress is enough to put an end to The Holidays as we know them, and frankly, I’m surprised it hasn’t happened yet. It would be okay with me. Then we could start over with the original ideas and purposes in mind and celebrate in simple moderation.
So, I’m going to put things in perspective this year as I have been striving to do in the past. I’m going to decide what’s important, then take care of that and let the rest of the flurry pass me by. I’m not going to over think it, or over do it. Simplicity, I firmly believe, is the answer and a worthy goal. It puts everyone at ease.
Later,
Mary Ann
