Reasons Not To...

I've been writing these daily blogs about why I love Christmas.

No surprise there, right?

And yet, this morning, I started to realize that there are some things that make me sad or make me not like it so much. So, here's the other side for you...

1. The fact that my Grandpa is no longer alive to celebrate with us. My grandpa passed away 4 years ago on November 16th. That first Christmas was really hard for all of us...but we pulled together and made sure we celebrated together. Since then, our Christmas celebrations have been non-existent. Everyone is doing their own thing now and we no longer get together with the whole family. It makes me sad. I know most of us grandkids are married now and have more family to celebrate with...but it still bums me out that our family celebrations kind of fell apart when my grandpa died.

2. Drama. 'Nuff said.

3. The commercialism of it all. I love giving and getting presents. Don't get me wrong. It's fun to surprise people...and be surprised. But, that is not the reason behind Christmas. And, even if it was...our society has made too big a deal out of spending TONS of money on people. I can't believe how many people are willing to go into major debt to get their family and friends these amazingly expensive gifts. I'm all about the thought behind it. A handmade card from a friend means so much more to me than anything anyone could possibly buy me. And again, I'm not saying I hate gifts...because I love them very much. I am just saying that you don't have to spend a lot of money on someone for them to appreciate your gift. There's no need to stress out or feel bad about Christmas gifts...or the lack of them. This time of year is all about celebrating Christ's birth...and doing so with the ones you love.

4. The refusal to say "Merry Christmas". I already mentioned this in my blog yesterday, but seriously...I hate how much people are afraid to offend others these days. I understand...some things we say can truly offend someone. But, "Merry Christmas"? I just don't get that one...

5. How rude people can get these time of year. Seriously. I worked retail. I understand both sides. Yes, it sucks to wait in long lines when you're trying to get your shopping done...but it's not the fault of those people behind the counter. It's no one's fault, really. There are many of us that procrastinate and do our shopping last minute...or those that truly only have time off work to go shopping in the final few days before Christmas. We're all trying to accomplish the same thing: get our shopping done. But those people behind the counters? They deserve some respect and some sympathy. Think about it. If you are rude to them, they are likely to be rude to the person behind you in line, and the cycle continues. Why can't we all just be nice and spread Christmas cheer to those we come in contact with? I appreciate retail workers so much more now that I've experienced their pain. I HATED working the Christmas season at Hallmark. We wrapped gifts for free...so many people would ask for their purchases to be wrapped. Many were patient and caring, while others would have 15 things they needed to have wrapped...and wanted them all done and ready to go in 5 minutes. It's hard to be nice to someone who's irritated with you or talking badly about you. And yes, there are people who will talk badly about your wrapping job or your ringing up skills right in front of your face...when you're doing nothing wrong. Ugh. My point is...just be nice to those in the stores. They are just doing their job.

So, there you go...my top 5 reasons why I don't love Christmas.