If you have turned on your television or left your house at some point in the past month, you are well aware the holidays are approaching. The supermarkets have traded in Halloween decorations for plastic reindeer and dangling snowflakes, and signs and advertisements bombard us wherever we go. It seems that the over-commercialization of the holiday season has grown more than ever. We put so much energy into the materialism of the holidays, but is this really where our emphasis should be?
As another year rolls around and the holidays are approaching once again, I feel somewhat sad during a time that is supposed to be joyous. When I was younger, I found security in the fantasy and magic that surrounds the season, and sheer pleasure at the tradition of opening presents on Christmas morning with family by my side and carols playing in the background. But now that I am older, I see the tedious effort that goes into creating the mystique of the holidays, and now am caught up myself in the pressures to buy gifts for friends and family despite being strapped for both the money and the time to think of a worthwhile and personal gift unique to each recipient.
“People feel compelled to give each other gifts, and because there is not enough time to come up with a meaningful gift idea for everyone, every year I get gifts from my friends that have no meaning whatsoever,” said Devon Hollowood, a San Ramon Valley High School junior.
It seems there is an excessive hustle-and-bustle that surrounds the winter season that is quickly eating away at the true meaning of the holidays. We have developed an out-of-control lifestyle, where each day has an accompanying to-do list (that only increases during the winter months), and there is hardly any time left over to develop connections or enjoy relationships. Many times, we enter a store completely focused and with the sole intention of picking up an item and leaving, because another errand awaits. We become another soulless customer, without a story or name – another robotic “Christmas buyer.”
I find that instead of viewing Christmas as a time to spend time with my family, enjoy my mother’s fantastic cooking, and reflect on my blessings, this time is stressful, and anything but the joyous and relaxing season it used to be. My parents, and I imagine many others, too, are neurotic trying to find time to shop for gifts and organize family get-togethers while maintaining the normal aspects of their lives.
In our society, it seems the material gifts we give mean more than the time we spend with one another. Everything excessively revolves around material objects and is not about personal connections, reflection and spiritual gifts.
Although Erin Parker, a Danville resident who goes to Carondelet High School, felt differently. “I think that the true meaning of the holidays lies in giving and the wonder one feels,” she said. “The amount of money that I choose to spend on a gift cannot compare to the feeling I get when giving it, and the over-commercialization of the holidays can’t take that feeling away.”
But it feels to me that this spirit of giving can sometimes get trampled in the hype of completing the gift-buying task.
Though we can’t escape the crush of holiday materialism entirely, it is important to find refuge in activities that involve giving ourselves and not material objects. Whether it be volunteering at a needy organization, spending time with an ailing relative or reconnecting with an old friend, take time out amid the hustle and bustle to capture the joy of the holiday season. Some of the biggest name companies are joining along in the effort to attach a good meaning to our excessive materialism. Bono of U2 and Bobby Shriver, a former vice presidenial candidate and son of the founder of the Peace Corps, have started a campaign called Product Red. Companies involved (among them: Apple, Converse, Armani, Gap, American Express and Motorola) set aside a portion of their profits that goes toward the Global Fund to fight against AIDS in Africa. Product Red is one way for shoppers to give to their own family and friends while helping fight the AIDS emergency. We can all find a unique way to give.
I had coffee with a friend at Starbucks last week, where holiday-themed thermoses adorn the shelves, and coffeepots and snowman-clad mugs serve as suggested Christmas gifts. Seasonal drink descriptions cover the chalkboard, and a perky cashier took my order for an eggnog latte. It was a cozy, comfortable scene that made it easy to linger a little longer and relax, making conversation with those around me. I came to the realization that it is important we all find a similar comfort spot, whether it be Starbucks or otherwise, to enjoy the cheery feeling of the holidays and give ourselves to others, in order to recapture the (at times) lost spirit of the season.
The 411 offers information and insight on the teen scene by Katharine O’Hara, a junior at San Ramon Valley High School who spends her free time going to concerts, enjoying her friends, and playing the piano.
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