Keeping the 'Merry' in Christmas
Every year I start to feel it just about now. It’s that gradual weight descending on your shoulders, the one that comes with the responsibility of making everyone else’s Christmas perfect. If you’ve not already got most of your Christmas shopping in by the beginning of December, people arch their eyebrows at you. You’re one of those, they sneer. One of the unorganised.
It’s the tension that comes with knowing you don’t want to spend hundreds of pounds out of your savings but that if you tell people you want to ‘do it small’ this year, they’ll think you are a cheapskate. After all, isn’t it all about the giving?
It’s the pressure of finding the perfect Christmas presents, and to make sure that you don’t forget anyone. It’s trying to remember who got you one last year, so you don’t make the cheek-burning mistake of receiving a gift from someone and not having one to give back to them.
It’s seeing the rows and rows of plastic packaging in shops and thinking to yourself, aren’t we meant to be trying to save the planet? How is this going to help?
It’s then trying to utilise your creative talents to go home-made. You’ve tried this most years, but it’s oh-so time-consuming. Things go wrong. You accidentally sew sleeve-holes together in a frenzied attempt to get it done on time. You use every crevice of your spare time to work on those last-minute home-made Christmas cards. It’s fun… up to a point. The cracking, soul-exploding, tears-cascading point.
Religious element aside, what is Christmas meant to be about anyway? Isn’t about spending time with our loved ones? The older we get, I think, the more we treasure the moments we get to spend with our friends and family, especially during this holiday season. How can we truly enjoy the time we spend with those we love if we’re frantically running around, trying to make our Christmas Instagram-worthy?
If I close my eyes and truly, deeply think about what I want out of Christmas, my list looks something like this.
Taking in the beautiful festive lights and displays.
Walking hand-in-hand with my partner on a clear, crisp day through some beautiful winter scenery (with our new puppy in tow, of course!)
Cheery, festive Christmas markets.
Mulled wine
Sitting beside the fire. (We’ve got a gas one this year. OK, so it’s not the real deal, but it’s a start!)
Enjoying quality time with friends and family over various meals and get-togethers
A chance to dress up and look pretty!
Listening to Christmas carols. They’re so timeless and beautiful.
Cuddling up on the sofa on a cold night to watch Christmas films.
All that delicious Christmas food!
My list isn’t extensive, but it’s a good start.
It may seem selfish, but I plan to care less what others think this year. I’m sorry if I offend you by not giving you a present. If I do give you a gift it may be small or home-made, but know that how much I spend on you is not a reflection on how much I love you or appreciate you.
Fact is, I’ll probably be judged on how little I spend, how much I spend, how badly made something is, how ridiculous it was to spend time making things, using wrapping paper, not using wrapping paper…
So I guess I’ll just do my own thing and let people judge.
Let’s be Christmas rebels. Let’s do it with minimal stress and remember what it means for us.
