It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.
Some are happy about it, but others aren’t.
Such is life, with everything. There will always be people with opposing views, on just about any subject.
But Christmas in the Halloween community tends to be a controversial one.
Are you a “poser” for enjoying and posting about Christmas, when you claim your favorite holiday is Halloween? Or are you a grinch for not caring to get into the spirit of a different holiday?
The answer is, of course, no, to both. Everyone has the right to do, or not do, what makes them happy as an individual. There’s no ironclad rule that you can’t enjoy more than one holiday, and there’s no ironclad rule that you have to force yourself into the spirit of a holiday that doesn’t mean all that much to you.
But I’ve seen a fair amount of hate regarding this issue, on both sides, so I figured I’d talk about where I stand, and what I think.
I am, personally, not a huge fan of Christmas. I wouldn’t say I hate it, it’s just not really my thing. In my younger years, I loved Christmas. But over time, situations within my family changed. My two aunts, that used to make the holiday extra special, kind of went their separate way as time went on. One remarried and eventually moved away, while the other had grandchildren, via her stepkids, that became her holiday priority. Maintaining traditions became hard after that, depressingly so. My parents didn’t see much reason to try anymore, once their only child was grown. Christmas shifted from an all day event to a couple points off of being “just another day”, relatively quickly, and little by little, the magic started to die for me. I tried to make my own fun, but my heart was never really in it, perhaps because it was never my favorite holiday to begin with. I was also in a relationship for several years with someone whose entire family had birthdays right around Christmas, which made shopping even more stressful and costly. And on top of everything else, I have a retail job, thus making the holidays the absolute most stressful time of the year! I can’t even begin to explain how overwhelming it gets.
So yes, as I’ve grown up, my feelings toward Christmas have changed, quite a bit. It’s become almost an indifference. I don’t care to fight for the old feeling anymore; it’s simply just not there, and that’s okay. I am much happier staying in my little bubble where it’s always October and every day is Halloween. I actually found I started to feel better about Christmas, once I stopped trying to force myself.
Yes, I get frustrated with the abundance of Christmas posts sometimes, as would anyone who feels bombarded by something that doesn’t interest them, especially immediately after Halloween. The end of the official Halloween season feels like a death to me, and I need time to mourn it. The sudden onslaught of content relating to a holiday that’s still nearly two months away can be overwhelming and off-putting. I won’t lie and say I don’t wish that there were more people who just post Halloween year-round, as I feel like it’s a bit harder to find solace in the Halloween community when everyone seems to be taking a two-month break for Christmas, but at the same time, I do understand it. If the Christmas season, and sharing content related to it, makes a person happy, then they should be allowed to enjoy it without anyone getting high-and-mighty and acting like loving Halloween should mean hating Christmas. But that works in the other direction as well. I see people commenting sometimes about those of us who choose not to do the Christmas thing, and may occasionally seem exasperated by it, implying that we’re looking down on or judging those that also love Christmas in some ways, or trying too hard to be hardcore Halloween. I can’t speak for the entire Halloween community, as I know there are some bullies out there, but I don’t judge anyone for the things they enjoy. I may get annoyed here and there, may make comments that I’m tired of the holiday season in general, or post the occasional meme, but at the end of the day, I think it’s wonderful that so many people have managed to hold onto the spirit of Christmas in adulthood. And a lot of time, I do enjoy seeing other people’s pictures and findings. It’s fun to see others get excited about the things they love, and many of the pictures are pretty. As I said at the beginning of this, I don’t hate Christmas, I just don’t personally get excited about it anymore. And in the grand scheme of things, my indifference toward the holiday has very little to do with Halloween, and a lot more to do with the depressing loss of family traditions and the exhaustion of a retail job.
Whatever your stance is on Christmas, just remember to live and let live. If it’s not your thing, scroll past it, unless something catches your eye and makes you smile. If you love it, do your thing, just don’t automatically assume that everyone who doesn’t love it is trying to burst your bubble or be negative for the sake of it. Everyone has their own reasons for feeling the way they do, whether it’s positive or negative, and we’re all just trying to do what makes us happiest in this crazy world. For some, it’s celebrating Christmas, and for others, it’s staying in the spirit of Halloween despite what the calendar says. No one should have to force themselves, in either direction.
Stay spooky, my friends. And may your days be scary and bright.
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