Christmas & Triumph
Intro
It’s Christmas, the happiest time of the year! Big presents, jazzy music and thick eggnog are a few of my favorite things, though Christmas time has value for a lot of reasons. It’s a mixed bag of a season; for some it’s about love and family, for others it’s about loneliness and solitude. Some people shut themselves away until the snow melts, some people decorate a tree and watch Home Alone. However you spend the holidays, it’s definitely a special time of year. I’m a sucker for the twinkling lights and Christmas songs, but there’s something more about the season that I admire. The end of the year marks the end of a lot of things, and with that comes pain and celebration. It’s a complex experience, but it’s necessary for us all. What I want to talk about today is why I believe winter isn’t just about giving gifts and singing carols, but it’s also about victory and the passage of time.
Hardship
Winter is all about struggle, in so many forms. Especially in recent years, people have a hard time with sickness separating them from their families. When you can’t see the people who the holidays are all about, it can be difficult emotionally. On the other hand, some people wish they could be separated from their families. I like most of mine, but God can they be insufferable. Especially in this political climate, I’d rather claw my eyes out than talk about inflation and the election with a room of close-minded bigots. Also, I love the snow, but I’m not gonna act like it doesn’t make life a chore. Where I live, one good storm can make going up the block a journey to rival BIlbo’s. Being in a car might as well be suicide; thankfully my crippling fear of driving will carry me through another season. Winter comes with speed and indifference to disrupt our lives, and Christmas comes to drain our pockets of money and our souls of energy. But as the year ends in misery, a new one begins with joy.
Triumph
Winter is the greatest challenge, a foe time pits us against year after year. And every time we come out on top, surviving through to January, just to do it all again. Christmas, to me, is about celebrating ourselves and each other. We give gifts out of love, and out of respect. There is never an easy cycle, some are just harder than others. But we survive them all, and for that we all deserve the love and appreciation that comes with the holidays. When the decorations go up, and my skin cracks under the cold air, I know that I’m in the home stretch, and it feels amazing. I love a good challenge, especially one with such a big reward, and having to work for all the joy of the season makes it all the sweeter when it arrives. So Christmas, to me, is definitely about Santa and cookies and gifts and whatever a yuletide is, but it’s also about triumph, and the achievement of conquering time. That feeling of pride is why I love winter more than any other season, and why I always look forward to an awful, gloomy December.
Outro
Even though it doesn’t always feel like it, this really is the most wonderful time of the year. I know it’s a struggle getting through these couple months, but if we all stick together and persevere, then it’ll be memorable for those of us who welcome the music and bright lights, and quick for those dreading slow traffic and cold mornings. I’m wishing you all the best this December. Bundle up, stay safe and stay healthy. If you ever need a break from the weather, or a story to get you through the long nights, then ScribeAve will be waiting with a wide smile and open arms.