But There Was A Time When You Got To Christmas ...

But there was a time when you got to Christmas and it all slowed down. You would have the week between Christmas and New Year’s sort of as the holiday. It is not that you didn’t work during that time, but things slowed down significantly. But like those hospital stays it has been shortened because things are planned in between. Part of that is our society. Since miles separate families, you find yourself traveling from one relative to another during that time. We are in that boat too, but we have always made sure to wait until the day after Christmas to start to travel. That makes us miss the first day of school after the holidays, but we think it is worth it. We traveled on Christmas day once before the boys were born, but we decided that wasn’t a good idea.

So part of the constant rush is the family situation. But part of it is the other rush continues. There are “after Christmas sales.” December 26th is becoming almost as big a shopping day as the day after Thanksgiving. And it is not just returns anymore. That is largely because of gift cards, but it makes the rush continue. The parties and expectations continue. And for some, it just never stops. What good is it to celebrate a holiday, even one as meaningful as Christmas, if it wears you out?