Christmas Overrated

Christmas is extremely overrated. Everything that Christmas was, no longer exists. Now it stands for hypocrisy, lewd behaviour, over-spending and debt; it is now akin to carnival. I was never a person to celebrate anything, but I liked it when I was young and the only thing I looked forward to was the fruit cake.

I truly dislike Christmas! The noise, the additional cars on the road that apparently persons only take out of the garage in December and put back by January 1. The 'jingle bells, jingle bells', (ugh), the 'I am dreaming of a white Christmas' (yeah right), the false smiles, the horrible false attitudes that persons seem to 'rent' for the month of December. And most of all, the persons who are so grumpy and unpleasant throughout the year, suddenly find new life. I find it very annoying.

- Rainne Christie

There was a time, many years ago, when as a child, I looked forward to Christmas with great joy and anticipation. Nowadays, the only things I look forward to this time of the year are the Christmas movie specials and the food. There no longer exists the feeling of family ties that used to abound every Christmas.

In addition, ever since I became too old to receive toys as gifts for Christmas and on birthdays, I have made Christmas wishes only to see them never come true. Then there's the added factor that people are put at even greater risk of crime during the 'festive' season. The crowds seem to appear in larger numbers during the month of December. I despise crowds.

Christmas is not so much a true holiday to spend with your friends and family. It is now a time for people to spend and earn money, money, money, and more money. Add to that, the useless decorations that are put up only once a year.

I no longer see the point of Christmas. That seems to have gone with time.

- Christopher Thomas

Christmas for me is the best time of the year. I look forward to the baking. I will bake early in the month of December, to supply my co-workers and family members. But the real Christmas baking in my house is on Christmas Eve. A tradition of my mother's: we stay up late and bake to ring in Christmas morning. My children look forward to decorating the Christmas tree on the first day of December.

Christmas day, I start out early because the cooking is my part, baking the ham, pouring a little more rum in the sorrel and the works. I love every bit of it. I, too, wish Christmas could be celebrated for an entire week.

Walking through the mall with my children, wrapping the gifts and seeing their faces on Christmas morning, now who can't love that? Visiting the country (Clarendon) and giving my nieces and nephews their gifts, oh, I am so happy. December 25, 2007, is around the corner and I can't wait for December 25, 2008. Merry Christmas!

- Vedete Coleman Grant