The holidays seem to be moving quickly and do not feel as exciting as they did in the past. From stores already stocking up on Valentine’s Day decorations the day after Christmas to the atmosphere no longer feeling quite so jolly and fun.
This last Christmas seemed to be a blur. Many, including myself, feel it came too fast and went too fast. This may be due to the fact we are getting older and trying to get used to the world after COVID hit. Either way, we can all agree the holidays feel different.
Before, the holidays were so fun and full of excitement. At school, gifts were exchanged and goody bags were passed around over unforgettable parties or potlucks during class. These were all traditions that were forgotten after the coronavirus came to America. The pandemic taught all of us to slow down and focus on our families and ourselves. But the aftermath left us scared of reaching out. It is hard to trust people giving out goody bags or any candy, especially in recent times with the rise of Fentanyl poisoning.
Seeing this, it seems that all the fun has been sucked out of the holidays. But this does not mean that it is not possible to have fun. Many still have gatherings and parties to celebrate the holidays with family and friends. We all need to learn to still have fun no matter the circumstance. We just need to be around the ones we love and trust.
Although I was still able to enjoy the holidays and have a great refreshing recharge over Winter Break, some do not feel the same. Denise Robles (12) shares how the holiday season was for her.
“I feel like the holidays went by so fast because it was only two weeks… I feel like little kids are always more excited about the holidays because it is centered around them. When you get older, it is kind of just another normal day since most of us have grown out of what we used to believe as a kid,” shares Robles.
Recently many have been noticing stores like Target and Walmart starting to sell holiday decorations way too soon. Only a few days after Halloween, Christmas decorations were already being placed on shelves. Was Thanksgiving just forgotten? Christmas trees, ornaments and fun inflatables. Many popular decorations sold out quickly like target famous dollar section gumball machines and cute white ornaments. No matter what it was, the shelves were nearly empty just a bit before Christmas. This kind of took away the fun of celebrating Thanksgiving due to stores already moving on to the next holiday. They are now doing the same thing with Christmas and Valentine’s day. New Year’s Eve had not even been celebrated yet and stores were already placing cute Valentine’s decorations on the shelves. Why are we moving on so quickly?
One reason the holidays may not feel the same and why so many cute decorations are sold out in stores, may be due to TikTok. The second people see cute decorations at stores like Target and Walmart they get on social media and share it with the world. Many selling out these things makes it seem like the holidays came so quickly and left so quickly as well.
The holidays were still and nice and fun providing us with a much needed break after finals. ALthough it may not feel like the holidays due to empty shelves at stores we were able to make up for it with the happiness we felt in our homes.
