Ah! Its that time of the year again, Christmas carols, Huge colorfully decorated trees firmly planted at the entrance of major retailers, Christmas crackers, family gatherings, bonuses and repeating the movie, “Love Actually” for the 57th time. Now its probably apparent from this recital that I am a BIG Christmas fan. Christmas albums, Mariah Carey’s “All I want for Christmas”, stockings, laughter, annual shutdown, there is not an aspect of Christmas that I do not love. This year I have decided to get myself a Christmas tree, in my entire adult life I’ve never gotten one and I think that the time has come. I’m torn between a small classic white and green one or to go big and insanely colorful, but all I know is I’m getting one.
Of course, holidays usually see us being lumped up into different categories. We have the low key grinches who declare that Christmas is just another holiday and you will wake up tomorrow and have school fees waiting for you and all the other adult responsibilities. So, they revel in saving all they dollars they get, I’m not sure if its so they can Lord it over the rest of us in January or simply because saving has some sort of high I’m yet to discover. I mean is it good to be financially responsible? Yes, without a doubt. Undeniable fact, but isn’t being financially savvy mean you can enjoy the holiday AND be Januarilly pragmatic?
Then we have the chronic over spenders. Christmas promotions and marketing are made with these people in mind. They will spend every single cent they have and wait to see what tomorrow will bring. Christmas shopping seems to bring some sort of high with it, I'm not sure what it is about the annual shutdown that makes them think January will not come. We all love to judge them, sometimes we ARE them. I think it’s a free-spirited life, I don’t know there is something about it that I admire. I mean sure is their unmitigated torture till the end of January? Sure, but there is also something to be said about an ampleness of spirit, an abandon and wildness so free, you don’t have to think about tomorrow.
You see, Christmas, like most holidays, is a heavily commercialized social construct. Just like Valentines Day and Easter bunnies and eggs. The funny thing is, I'm okay with that, involve me, make my life have more peak periods of fun for no reason, OR more aptly fictional made up reasons we just decided amongst ourselves. I mean we decided on how time works and we show up to work daily at 8am. That seems to work well enough. I mean Jesus wasn't even born at Christmas time according to researchers. I reckon, holidays are there to give us a break from the monotony and rigmarole of daily life. Its like art or music. They exist largely to bring us pleasure and lets embrace that. The problem starts when we live life as if the only important thing is work and making money. Enjoyment is also a necessity, in whatever form you deem fit to responsibly experience it.
What we can agree on, is that December is not just a season, its not just a month, its not even just a period, it’s a spirit, sensation, a feeling like no other. I remember last December, my brother and I left home around half past 7 in the morning, the plan was to grab a few drinks by the local supermarket and some bread. When we got there, we decided it was a good idea to get to Food lovers honeydew for a visit to their famed delicatessen section, lo and behold, we ended up getting back home at 8pm. That my friends, is the spirit of December. It creeps up on you when you least expect it, when you have well laid out plans for adult rationality and sober mindedness and that is why jaunty January exists because sometimes, as well meaning as you may be, December is a spirit.
The consequence of living in a country that has over 95 percent unemployment rate is that there is an alarming amount of brain drain, and it all seems like fun stats until you realize that the brain drain means your brothers and sisters, your aunts and uncles, your mothers and fathers. It means my niece grows up without hugging me every day or experiencing afternoons with aunty. Its painful, and Christmas tries to bridge that gap, because we try and cram as much memories as we can into the time periods, we spend with our diaspora resident family members.
Christmas can also be a very painful time, particularly since the advent of the pandemic. We have lost too many people since 2020, the sheer statistics are unbelievable. Its someone’s first Christmas without their dad, maybe dad used to roast the chicken or braai the meat in the yard outside. He is no longer there to do it. Someone lost their daughter since last Christmas and they won’t be able to have freshly baked homemade cookies this year, courtesy of their daughter. It can be a heart wrenching period, with each event bringing a painful awareness. To these people I say, your loved one existed, they lived and loved with an impact around your heart, they laughed and created memories that you hold on to, and I hope that this Christmas, you find a way to cope with the pain and the new memories you have to create. I hope you make them proud because they would have wanted you to remember them.
And so, as the year draws to a close, I’ve been, sparingly consistent with my blog posts, but as always, I’m happy I started, in the December spirit, may we remember January as we try and live in the moment. May we be individuals who understand the balance of life and planning, after all no one is getting out of here alive.
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