How Would You Compare Christmas Time As An Adult Than When You Were As A Teenager?
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To me it seems far less spiritual now and much more commercialised.
Answers (5)
There is no doubt that as one gets older, the magic of Christmas gets less and less, and that's not just as a result of growing up, it's more about the increasing routine of commercial pressures and greed. You are spot on CS, any spiritual feeling seems to have completely disappeared. I don't even notice the Christmas lights that adorn our high streets, shops and on the outside of houses everywhere anymore ... which is such a shame as they always used to lift my spirits in years gone by. A lot of this festivity 'numbness' seems to stem from the increased pressures, year after year, that Christmas brings and the fact that people simply don't have the money nowadays. In fact, so many people seem to fear Christmas approaching and sigh relief when it is over.
How do we bring back the magic I wonder?
Today everyone seems to spend so much money on Christmas. As children we were perfectly happy with only one present but today everyone expects so much. The decorations have to be just so, the food is enough to feed an army etc. It didn't used to be like that. The lack of spiritual awareness is also true. So many people have no real knowledge of the Christmas story. It's a shame.
The power of the media roseangel! We're constantly bombarded with the 'perfect Christmas' wherever we look, the gifts suggested in magazines etc are always expensive - I even saw an ipad2 advertised as a stocking filler! (We used to have a few nuts and an ornage in ours...)Add to that the 'prefect table decoration/lunch/whatever and I can see why people feel pressurised. We don't buy an awful lot more food than usual - by January we're all sick of it anyway - and this year I've had problems getting my children to even suggest what they'd like for Christmas. My son has asked for a dvd, oldest and youngest daughter have not asked for anything, and my middle daughter hesitated to ask for a ds game that was £20 as she thought it expensive............
You are absolutely right Jazzj too much food wasted and too much booze guzzled. All going literally down the pan. Who really does have this perfect Christmas? I always enjoy the family coming and the laughter but I'm glad when it's all over and back to normal again.
I know how you feel Sabre, its lovely to see everyone but normality is much appreciated afterwards :)
Hi CS, as you know I'm not a Christian, but I do agree with you that the spiritual values of Christmas seem to have become almost lost in the commercialism.
As a child and a young teen, we always attended our village church's Christmas Day service, as did the vast majority of people living in our village. In fact, as young children, we weren't allowed to open our presents until we got back from church! There was also a midnight candlelit Christmas Eve service in the neighbouring village, which I remember attending in my teens. We all knew the Christmas story and understood exactly why we gave and received presents and what it represented. We learned about it from our parents, from school and from sunday school.
Times have changed, and consumerism, and its associated greed, has become the new 'religion'. The vast majority of us are paying for that, no matter how small a part we may have played, but hopefully, the associated suffering that this rampant consumerism is causing to so many will change all our attitudes for the better, whether we are of any particular religious persuasion or not. I hope that doesn't sound pompous, I would just like to see a re-evaluating of what is really important in life, so that our children and our children's children grow up in a better, more caring and less self-centred world.
I love christmas,i just see it as fun and drunkenness and presents and friends. When i was younger it was better, when you beleived in santa and everything was so magical. I did become abit nieve though, i thought that when i first moved out i could go spend christmas with mum and dad and everything would be as normal. it seems that familys fall out and the magic dissappears, all have fake smiles and pretend to like gifts, but you dont see that when your little. I now only spend it with my boyfriend and go see my nieces, then i spend the rest of the day chatting to friends who i know dont bulls**t about any of it...
How sad you're so cynical. My family always has a good laugh when we get together, particularly as its quite rare for us all to get together in one place.
Im not being cynical, thats just how it is, every year, i wish it wasnt but it is...
none of my family get on with each other by the way...
Ah that is awkward, being stuck in a room making small talk with people you're not keen on is never going to be easy!
I never invite anyone I don't want to be with on Christmas day. The nearest and dearest are invited but if they want to do their own thing I don't sulk I just tell them to enjoy themselves because that's what it's all about. I could put a bet on my daughter for millions though as she would never ever miss a Christmas lunch with her Mum for anything and she makes me laugh as she is so easy going and always offers to bring things for lunch (which I refuse) and helps to wash up and tidy up after the big "nosh". My son on the other hand would never miss coming down on Christmas morning but more often than not he and his fiancee like to cook their own meal especially as they don't see very much of each other during the week. That suits me fine. We always invite father-in-law and lady friend and sometimes they come and others they do their own thing. If you insist and get upset because family don't want to come it's not worth it and spoils the whole day.
Hi EmmaMarie.
Could you invite your Mum and Dad for a meal just before Christmas then no one would fall out and you would enjoy their company and have a good time.
Christmas should be about sharing time with family but I am so aware that it can also be a time when 'uncomfortableness' creeps in ... it does seem to bring out the worst in people, it has to be said.
I too used to find Christmas a magical time but lately I find myself more and more anaesthetised to all of the colourful lights and false seasonal compliments. The value of 'care' between folk seems sadly missing nowadays. And we shouldn't have to have a reason, like Christmas, just to care about one another.
I'll be spending Christmas day with my daughter and grandchildren and I know that'll be a good day as I don't currently have a partner to share it with.
Mind you, someone I know works for the Red Cross and helps to save 'fallen women' ... I might just ask if they can save one for me for Boxing Day!
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That's a shame Snoopy. I love the lights and music and carol concerts - still a big kid at heart! I don't spend beyond my means at Christmas though - I couldn't face the aftermath on January, so my emphasis has always been on fun and games and family, and less about materialistic things.