I can hear it now. I’m a Scrooge, a humbug, a spoilsport and a cynic. Maybe so.
But I feel for a lot of people around this upcoming holiday. I’m not talking about those that are lonely or too poor for food, even though they deserve sympathy and care too. I’m talking about the middle to low income families and the poor slob that is the husband/father. In many cases these people have a hard enough time keeping the bills and creditors at bay. The ever-increasing difficulty in keeping food in the bellies, clothes on the backs and gas in the car. People holding their own in an unfair world and not asking or expecting any handouts.
In today’s society, parents are expected to give their kids everything their hearts desire and if they do not go through with this, they are awful people. I’ve talked to people that say this time of year is the worst for them. No matter how they attempt to save and plan ahead, the Season of loving-kindness and generosity is a living nightmare. Too many people get behind on their payments or even worse, get themselves into debt. A swamp of killer interest rates and payments that can never be caught up on. It is expected of them.
And it’s not like I didn’t get the royal treatment when I was growing up. We lived in humble means, but every Christmas the floor was so full of toys and presents that you couldn’t even walk. I’m not feeling sorry for myself either. I’m a pretty lucky guy in this regard. I have an employer that always gives a ridiculously generous bonus and it easily covers the purchases I need to make. But too many others aren’t as fortunate.
People get depressed and even physically sick when they contemplate the season and its implications. And they are reminded of it everywhere they go, from bell-ringers outside of stores begging for another piece of their ass to sickeningly sweet carols playing everywhere. A constant reminder that they are shitty parents/children/family members unless they spend far more than they are able to for Christmas presents. It’s the same warped logic that makes a young man think he has to go into debt to get an engagement ring that is preposterously outside his budget. A trinket that merely symbolizes the real bond between a couple about to be married.
Wouldn’t it be better if everyone just gave and received one item? Something that comes from the heart and not the mall. But the retailers get all lined up anticipating the profits that they’ll accumulate over the joyous holiday season. Children are programmed to expect an enormous payoff at Christmas and many adults even put unrealistic expectations on others this time of year.
And the poor get poorer by the day.
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