We must love Christmas by force?

Christmas is approaching fast. It’s a blessed time of year, full of joy, gifts, love, and sharing. A time to spend with family, basking in happiness and fortune, thinking about food and the future, singing songs, attending mass, and loving life. Anticipation seems to start earlier every year, with lights and trees pulled down from the attic and set up in the living room well before St. Ambrose’s Day or the Immaculate Conception. But what if, for some people, all of this causes a sense of dreadful anxiety? Let's take a closer look.

Reasons Why We Might or Might Not Enjoy Christmas

Hard as it may be to believe, not everyone enjoys Christmas. In fact, for some, it's a challenging time. Some struggle with food issues, others do not wish to spend it with family members they may have cut ties with long ago, for various reasons. For many, Christmas is a time of loneliness, a moment of sad reflection. Even if that’s not the case, we can’t escape the fact that, since mid-October, we’re bombarded with Christmas: the colors, the lights, the reds and greens. Panettone is already on supermarket shelves, the most absurd Advent calendars are everywhere. TikTok is filled with holiday content. The winter holidays are a pervasive force, and it’s not enjoyable for everyone.

Individualism, Anxiety, and the Pressure to Spend

Anxieties and expectations pile up, along with external and internal pressures. What if there’s no time to buy presents? What if an argument with our uncle escalates at the table in front of Grandma? Stress levels are high, and nothing seems to help. Winter temperatures haven't even arrived, snow is a distant memory, and climate concerns keep growing. The recent U.S. elections haven’t exactly inspired hope, and neither do reports from Palestine or international news. We feel pressured, isolated, and mental health is at an all-time low. We don’t want to buy anything, yet we don’t want to show up empty-handed. We aren’t earning enough. Do we have to keep going?

What to Do at Christmas if You Dislike It

This is a safe space for anyone who doesn’t enjoy Christmas. If you’ve refused to book tickets home and don’t know how to spend those cold December nights, here are a few ideas: go to the movies and enjoy a cozy night in with a good film. Gather friends who are also alone for an anti-Christmas dinner, a small act of personal rebellion. Finally, if you’re not too plagued by FOMO, simply consider doing nothing. Christmas started as a pagan celebration, then transformed into a Christian one, and now showcases the power of the traditional family; we can choose to opt out, at least in our own homes. Most importantly, remember that not celebrating something doesn’t make us better or worse; it’s simply one choice among many. Onward to 2025.