Fake plastic trees. Styrofoam snow. False cheer. Burning of wood and money. Just some of the things that come into my mind when I think of Christmas. It's a long list, and it will take me forever to jot them all; seriously, they're all composed of horrible unprintables.
When it is December, and you hear Christmas, it's great in the ears: gifts, trees, bright lights, soothing songs, cheer. But when you think about it carefully, it's horrible: having to buy gifts to brats who wouldn't appreciate anything until you get them "The One" they want (and they always change their preferences every year); setting up decorations you know no-one would appreciate; plugging Christmas lights that will make your electricity bills shoot out of orbit; carolers ranging from one-man-bands to an orchestraic choir acappellas who wouldn't appreciate your shelling out of a hundred bucks for their performance (sometimes they don't leave to show how disappointed they are in your shelling out of a hundred bucks); among others.
Christmas is the time where we are supposed to celebrate the birth of the One who is to save us all from our sins when the end comes, or so we are told. (Whichever religion you are, if you do good deeds, when you die you will go to paradise and live a happy life; otherwise you go to the corollary of heaven, which is hell.) What we have here now is evil marketing strategy of business owners to make us cough up every bit of money we have to buy gifts you hate so much. People that make you cringe when they are near you. People you'd rather push off a deep cliff.
Just like Valentines day, Labor day, back-to-school days, independence days, thanksgiving days, days of the dead and other recognized holidays, festivities and occasions, Christmas is the time for businessmen to make money. And to do that they will hostage people and drag then to their turfs (malls, stores, etc.) and force them to spend every cent they have worked hard for on stuff no-one really needs or else they won't get out of the place alive. Not to mention that the insipid stuff they're throwing on us are contributing to the slow but certain destruction of our planet in the long run, but the continuous sabotage of nature, through the manufacture of tripe greeting cards and combustible gifts, the burning of anything for warmth, and other things that make use of natural resources and the creation of trash, is shortening our time left before the Almighty One smites us dead because of out doing. Already the world is showing the signs that signal the coming of The End.
Anyway, this article is not about environmental concerns (although it has a huge share of attention) or postponing Christmas. All I want you to do this year is to celebrate Christmas responsibly and sensibly. Enjoy the winter wonderland in a simple and basic way, just for this year, and celebrate the true reason why we are celebrating Christmas in the first place.
Sometimes brevity is a virtue.
