Christmass has always been painted as a magical season filled with joy, laughter and warmth. For a long time, the side of Christmas that has always been shown and advertised everywhere is the side of merriment, joyful gatherings, twinkling lights and all. However, there is the other side to Christmas that many people often do not talk about. For many adults and individuals self employed, or working class, there is an extreme amount of stress associated with the season.
This joyful season can also be an exhausting time of the year. From juggling between work deadlines, family responsibility, market rush hour and the high spike of prices, Christmas can transition into a very stressful season filled with a lot of pressure.
One of the biggest sources of stress I have to deal with this Christmas season is work deadlines. There is the never ending pressure of meeting up with deadlines, projects, rounding up tasks, finalizing deals and meeting up with the high demands of customers, who are expecting more done in less time. At a point it becomes a race against time. As an employee, I find myself constantly juggling between long hours of work, last minute tasks, while still mentally preparing myself for some personal to-do list I need to carry out in preparation for the season. At the end of it all, December feels like the year's closing hour rather than a jolly season.
There is also the market chaos attached to the spirit of Christmas. You go out into the market and it's like a battle ground. The stores and roads are flocked with people, customers, and last minute buyers. The traffic becomes uncontrollable, parking seems like an impossible mission, and to top it all, a basic visit to the market turns into a five hour journey of endless struggles. The onset of the season and pressure of getting everything perfect and ready drives people into uncontrolled shopping madness.
The worst of it all, is the ridiculous increase in the prices of goods and services. The high demands in the season adversely leads to a rise in the cost of food, clothes, decorations, transportation and sometimes even basic items needed in the home. Sometimes, I am forced to cut down on my budget to meet up with the cost of food.
At the end of the day, all this; the deadlines, rush hour, market chaos, and ridiculous price increase takes away the joy of Christmas. The hard truth is, this side of Christmas needs also to be acknowledged. The world needs to stop sugarcoating Christmas, making it feel so magical while leaving out the exhausting part of it, which is filled with stress and pressure.
Sometimes, for some people, me included, Christmass can be overwhelming. Rather than it being a season of joy and happiness, the stress attached to Christmas can turn it into a time of worry, tension, and trying to keep up, all masked under cheerfulness and decorations. But the real truth is, behind the magical season, are individuals doing their best to hold it all together.