The Guilt in Celebration

The holidays are the one thing for which everyone patiently awaits because whatever occurs previous to their arrival does not prevent said appearance. They are bound to come around punctually as if they had a permanent date with humanity every twelve months. The problem lies, however, in determining why one’s excitement about certain days of the year is so great when the rest of the year simply passes by without receiving any special attention. So why are the holidays so special? The most common answer to such inquiry is as follows. The holidays are the perfect time to spend time with the family. But are they really an excuse to spend time with the family that is mostly neglected the rest of the year, or, are they a capitalist creation to coerce the public to spend money on commodities that more often than not are not necessary?
It is, indeed, difficult to reach a consensus about this interrogative since there is evidence that supports both cases. The holidays serve an important role as far as family time is concerned. It is well known that during the holidays there usually is also vacation time, in most cases because there are certain occupations that do not allow for said leisure time. The time that would then otherwise be spent working or at school is projected towards other activities. Family tends to become the number one priority because it requires a considerable amount of attention and there is the free time for attending to familial necessities. This occurs whether it is only one day off due to an obscure holiday or during the extensive winter holiday season. Thousands of students head home during holidays, as do thousands of people who have not been at home during the year due to their job location. This seems to suggest that family takes precedence to any other matters that could occupy the time of those who travel home during holidays.
On the other hand, holidays are the days that report the greatest profits as well as the times during which most companies or retailers offer items at reduced prices. Is it a coincidence that this happens during holidays? Of course, it is not. It is rather a plan to persuade people to buy more of which they would otherwise not do so, or simply to buy items that would not be on their list of articles to acquire. The situation correlates. The inhabitants of the world experience a certain ecstasy as a result of the time off from school or work, and they seem to think that anything is possible because their routine has changed for the time being. People then tend to forget that a reality check will come. Later, indeed, but it will materialize. In the meantime, they buy anything and everything that they can afford to whether the cash inflow or their credit card limits allows them to. It does not matter much the medium of exchange used to pay for the items that captivate their attention at the store.
The holidays are indeed an opportunity to enjoy an extended period of time with the family. This is proven by those who cannot wait for the holidays because otherwise it seems close to impossible to enjoy a sunset drinking hot chocolate while conversing with the other members of the family that have not been seen in months. Yet, that is not their sole purpose since those same people who enjoy a conversation with the family over hot chocolate, also take trips to the nearest mall in order to make purchases together as means of spending precious moments with the much missed family in order to make sure they do not forego the sales.
Are holidays then really necessary for family bonding purposes, or is that only a contingency because the actual beneficiaries are the retailers, which can always find an excuse to make people spend money? The consumerist society that we inhabit suggests that deriving family time from holidays is only part of a long forgotten instinct. If the need presented itself, there would not be any event whether work or school that would interfere with spending time with the family that we seem to miss so much when the holidays arrive. Then, family time is only an attempt to purge the guilt for the money unnecessarily splurged because we are easily influence by publicity but not by those who have spent most of their lives at our side.

xoxo,
Poison Drops


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