Advent
I've met many in my past of whom do not celebrate Christmas, whether traditional or the modernized concept of it. Despite residing in a Muslim country however, one can already feel the Christmas spirit in the as people in school begin singing Christmas carols, hanging up decorations and start seeing Christmas themed bake sales for charity. These are small aspects I agree, but it's something that has already brought Christmas to the small little expatriate world that I live in among a sea of people who do not know, let alone celebrate Christmas. As advent has already begun, I thought that it would be appropriate to make a post about Christmas.
Celebrating the consumerism concept of Christmas, one of my most favourite aspects about Christmas was basically being able to wake up every morning to find presents under the Christmas tree. I'd spend the whole morning ripping them open and enjoying their contents. Me being me, the presents came mostly in the form of video games, of which I will spend the whole morning and perhaps afternoon playing to my heart's content, which is not something one should really do in Christmas time. Of course, there was always that Christmas eve family reunion dinner which I would always attend and enjoy the presence of those who I hardly had the opportunity to meet up with, due to the fact that both that family member particular and myself live on the other side of the world. Not only that, but I had the privilege to eat the delicious ham and turkey, of which I would only indulge in once a year due to the season. Of course, one could go to the shop and buy it everyday to snack on once in a while, but what would be the point of Christmas without the food being exclusive to the season? It's the fact that we so seldom eat it that we find so much satisfaction during consumption.
However there is an underlying shadow beneath this joy. Very soon my major exams will come once again, and I would be forced to once again delve into the horrors and bores of everyday life and I will no doubt suspect that it will be the same for my readers as well. That's what makes Christmas so special after all; it's a break from the stresses of daily life. Well, just for awhile anyway. We all know that we'll have to go back into the boring everyday life that we are used to, so we must as well have fun enjoying Christmas while it lasts and look forward to the next year ahead of us.
Hang in there, Christmas is right around the corner :)
Matthew Tan
Celebrating the consumerism concept of Christmas, one of my most favourite aspects about Christmas was basically being able to wake up every morning to find presents under the Christmas tree. I'd spend the whole morning ripping them open and enjoying their contents. Me being me, the presents came mostly in the form of video games, of which I will spend the whole morning and perhaps afternoon playing to my heart's content, which is not something one should really do in Christmas time. Of course, there was always that Christmas eve family reunion dinner which I would always attend and enjoy the presence of those who I hardly had the opportunity to meet up with, due to the fact that both that family member particular and myself live on the other side of the world. Not only that, but I had the privilege to eat the delicious ham and turkey, of which I would only indulge in once a year due to the season. Of course, one could go to the shop and buy it everyday to snack on once in a while, but what would be the point of Christmas without the food being exclusive to the season? It's the fact that we so seldom eat it that we find so much satisfaction during consumption.
However there is an underlying shadow beneath this joy. Very soon my major exams will come once again, and I would be forced to once again delve into the horrors and bores of everyday life and I will no doubt suspect that it will be the same for my readers as well. That's what makes Christmas so special after all; it's a break from the stresses of daily life. Well, just for awhile anyway. We all know that we'll have to go back into the boring everyday life that we are used to, so we must as well have fun enjoying Christmas while it lasts and look forward to the next year ahead of us.
Hang in there, Christmas is right around the corner :)
Matthew Tan
Comments
Post a Comment