When my grandmother was just a wee whippet running about on Christmas Eve, her excitement matched that of today’s children. Santa was destined to come down the chimney, and despite the Great Depression, Christmas still held the same magic for her as it did in years past.
Her father had casually snuck to the woodshed late in the evening for the past month, fashioning Christmas presents for her and her two brothers. He would hide them out of sight from prying eyes during the day, and each child could count on receiving three or four handsome presents, along with some stocking stuffers, to ring in their Christmas morning. Once the gift-opening was complete, the children were delighted with their new treasures, spending most of the day playing with whatever creations my great-grandfather had lovingly crafted by hand.
Try doing that with today’s kids, and you’re likely to have a child in tears, believing that Santa did not find their behavior appealing. Since my grandmother’s childhood, Christmas has been completely revamped into a holiday of dramatic financial proportions. As much as we claim to dread it and lament the commercial aspects of shopping for the holidays, there’s no denying that we’ve contributed to this phenomenon.
We tell children that Santa delivers presents to good children and leaves a lump of coal for those who haven’t behaved well. How likely are we to allow our children to believe they are “bad”? Not likely, especially with pop psychology advising against the word “bad,” suggesting that children aren’t inherently bad but simply need guidance to improve their behavior. This mindset has, whether we realize it or not, contributed more than media to the commercialization of Christmas.
We encourage children to make specific lists for Santa, often offering multiple visits to Santa to accommodate forgotten wishes. After all, it’s Christmas, and we want them to feel loved—even by a mythological figure we’ve created. So, we rush out to buy the perfect toys and fulfill their desires, often adding more gifts if they’ve experienced hardship, like a death, divorce, or serious illness.
But why stop there? Our parents, partners, friends, and extended family all deserve the best too. We shower people with gifts, compensating for lost time or because they are struggling to make ends meet. Yet, we also resent the overwhelming Christmas images, sales, and pressure to spend, spend, spend, that the media relentlessly push on us.
How to Combat Christmas Commercialization
So, what can we do about this cultural phenomenon? We have more options than we realize. While my little family is equally guilty of spending too much money at Christmastime—sometimes out of obligation or guilt—we’ve also adopted a few principles to help scale back the commercialization of the season.
First and foremost, the gifts we give require our time. Whether it’s a meal at a fabulously overpriced restaurant, an overnight trip to a fun destination, or passes to the symphony or zoo, we aim to incorporate as many time-based gifts as possible. This approach still provides ample wrapped boxes under the tree, yet it shifts our mindset toward reducing guilt-driven spending.
Santa Claus in our household is someone we visit and express our wishes to, but we don’t write out lengthy lists. A child who loves music may receive a variety of inexpensive musical instruments and tickets to a musical show, while the child who loves sports might get sporting equipment or tickets to a game. By eliminating the pressure of long lists, we allow ourselves to give gifts that encourage development and creativity without the risk of disappointment. Sometimes, if a specific request is made, we might consider it for a birthday gift or as a stocking stuffer.
While we haven’t completely eliminated the commercialization aspect of Christmas, we feel we have gained control over it by implementing these basic principles. Our goal is to provide quality Christmas presents without accumulating debt. We hope to give everyone the time they deserve from us without pushing ourselves beyond our limits. It’s a balance that every family must discover for themselves. Small changes, however, often go over really well and make a huge impact.
