What is Christmas all about as we head into 2015?
It’s not surprising that the meaning of Christmas has changed since the birth of Jesus all those years ago.
In fact, to most, it’s not necessarily about that at all anymore.
Instead, people see the festive holiday as a time to give nice gifts and receive nice gifts, to eat tonnes of food and to play games and watch telly with the family.
In more recent years, especially since the 60s, Christmas has become an ever-growing consumer holiday.
We are all guilty of buying more and more for our friends and family every year; our lives for the entirety of December are taken up with stressful bargain hunting and whole day shopping sprees, using money we don’t actually have.
With days such as ‘Black Friday’ and ‘Cyber Monday’, people go crazy for the chance to buy reduced priced TVs from their local Tesco and fight like animals to get the best deal of the day.
What have we become? We’ve become a nation obsessed with bargains and having what we want, when we want it… whatever the cost.
But for most people over this joyous season, Christmas has an entirely different meaning. Family.
Whether it’s Christmas Eve playing Trivial Pursuit with your grandparents, Christmas Day in front of the fire watching the BBC1 Christmas special and pigging out on too much food, Christmas is the time you forget what day you’re next working.
Whether it’s the big Boxing Day party, full of games and even more food, Christmas is the time you forget when that essay is due in, and you enjoy this special, rare time you have with your family. Just you and them doing whatever it is you do at this magical time of year.
We might complain that people spend too much and shop too much around this time of year, but what’s so wrong about wanting to give the people you love the perfect gift for Christmas?
There’s nothing better than seeing the look of pure joy on someone’s face when they open the present you’ve worked so hard on buying for them!
Treasure this Christmas, and enjoy yourself, because it only comes round once a year.