For the past few years, the commercialization of Christmas has become overwhelming. I generally don’t appreciate being forced or manipulated to make any purchase. I am the kind of person who plans their purchases. I decide what I want, I window shop until I am sure and then I budget. It doesn’t matter what a great salesperson one may be. There is just no way you can ever convince me to buy something I was not planning to purchase.
There are rare occasions I may be walking past a shop and something in the window or on a rack catches my eye and I have to have it! So I buy it. However, I cannot stand advertisements that instil an urge for things that people really don’t need. The message in these commercials is that if you don’t come out to get it now! The World will end and you’ll never get another chance to buy it. Especially at such a low price. The truth is that if I don’t need it I really don’t care how cheap it is. It seems Christmas has become a shopping madness.
I truly love giving, especially meaningful gifts but I often get overwhelmed by Christmas commercials. I have noticed they start them a day after Halloween or even as soon as the evening of October 31st. This is how I feel as an adult. I cannot imagine what goes through the minds of children. Or what an ‘I want’ generation this is breeding. But I won’t even go there.
To keep me grounded, I often reminisce of how I spent Christmas when I was growing up in Zimbabwe. The emphasis was not put on individual gift exchanges but on people coming together to eat, drink and dance. As a little girl, I often got two new outfits at the end of the year. One was to wear on Christmas Day and the other on New Year’s. On Christmas Day people cooked more so they could invite their neighbours and strangers. Passers by were invited in to eat. The emphasis was on sharing and showing kindness to others.
For the past few years, the commercialization of Christmas has become overwhelming. I generally don’t appreciate being forced or manipulated to make any purchase. I am the kind of person who plans their purchases. I decide what I want, I window shop until I am sure and then I budget. It doesn’t matter what a great salesperson one may be. There is just no way you can ever convince me to buy something I was not planning to purchase.
There are rare occasions I may be walking past a shop and something in the window or on a rack catches my eye and I have to have it! So I buy it. However, I cannot stand advertisements that instil an urge for things that people really don’t need. The message in these commercials is that if you don’t come out to get it now! The World will end and you’ll never get another chance to buy it. Especially at such a low price. The truth is that if I don’t need it I really don’t care how cheap it is. It seems Christmas has become a shopping madness.
I truly love giving, especially meaningful gifts but I often get overwhelmed by Christmas commercials. I have noticed they start them a day after Halloween or even as soon as the evening of October 31st. This is how I feel as an adult. I cannot imagine what goes through the minds of children. Or what an ‘I want’ generation this is breeding. But I won’t even go there.
To keep me grounded, I often reminisce of how I spent Christmas when I was growing up in Zimbabwe. The emphasis was not put on individual gift exchanges but on people coming together to eat, drink and dance. As a little girl, I often got two new outfits at the end of the year. One was to wear on Christmas Day and the other on New Year’s. On Christmas Day people cooked more so they could invite their neighbours and strangers. Passers by were invited in to eat. The emphasis was on sharing and showing kindness to others.
I know that beneath all the commercialization of Christmas there is a spirit of giving that this holiday signifies. It’s a magical time in many ways. I don’t want to be so put off by the advertisements that I end up not appreciating this time of the year. I initially told those around me not to get me anything this Christmas. It was my way of refusing to be exploited by commercialization of the holiday. But then I found out my fiancé’s family hasn’t been able to spend a Christmas together for almost 20 years and this holiday everyone will be there. So, in the spirit of making this Christmas special but not excessive, it was agreed to have a name raffle. This way each person buys a gift for the name they pick.
I wonder if there are people who are changing the way they shop for Christmas gifts. I would love to know how you are making this time stress free. I hope you all take a deep breath, be present in everything you do with family and loved ones. This is what makes beautiful memories. Merry Christmas.
I know that beneath all the commercialization of Christmas there is a spirit of giving that this holiday signifies. It’s a magical time in many ways. I don’t want to be so put off by the advertisements that I end up not appreciating this time of the year. I initially told those around me not to get me anything this Christmas. It was my way of refusing to be exploited by commercialization of the holiday. But then I found out my fiancé’s family hasn’t been able to spend a Christmas together for almost 20 years and this holiday everyone will be there. So, in the spirit of making this Christmas special but not excessive, it was agreed to have a name raffle. This way each person buys a gift for the name they pick.
I wonder if there are people who are changing the way they shop for Christmas gifts. I would love to know how you are making this time stress free. I hope you all take a deep breath, be present in everything you do with family and loved ones. This is what makes beautiful memories. Merry Christmas.