Years ago, the smell of cinnamon and hot chocolate used to fill the room, and multicolored lights glowed brightly outside the window.
The snow glistened radiantly as you eagerly waited for your favorite show to air their holiday special. A warm, cozy feeling settled into your chest as the Christmas spirit bounced off the walls.
The feeling of being so excited and staying up all night hoping to catch a glimpse of the magical Santa Claus and his reindeers dissipates as the years go on.
As the end of childhood approaches and adulthood nears, the room no longer feels happy. The snow doesn’t magically glisten, and that warm feeling has disappeared.
Instead, the feeling of impending doom settles in. Now, you can’t sleep because you have to stay up studying for finals, not because you’re waiting on Santa Claus.
The heavy snowfall prevents you from leaving your home at all, locking you in with all your worries.
As the magic fades, it is replaced with piles of homework and endless to-do lists. Looking down the road, we feel things might seem helpless.
While our holidays may look different than they used to, things don’t always have to be seen through such a hopeless lens. Sometimes looking at things through rose-tinted glasses is for the better.
Although our childhood is on a ticking time bomb, we can still do things to enjoy the perks that come with growing up, especially during the festivities. Going sledding or watching Christmas movies with your loved ones are great ways to participate in the holiday season.
For our publication, The Journal hosts multiple festive activities in order to keep the spirit alive. These activities include a bake-off between Journal members and a Christmas party to wrap the semester up.
Not only that, our entire class participates in The Journal Secret Santa. The Journal staffers all love partaking in these activities because it helps us grow together as a family and even reignite our Christmas magic within.
Through this, we are able to tap into our younger selves while maintaining productivity within the newsroom.
Along with doing festive activities, the holiday season is also a great time to give back to the community in order to keep the holiday spirit alive. You can volunteer at food pantries or donate to your local shelters.
While growing up can be difficult and bittersweet around the holidays, it also has positive aspects and doesn’t always have to be seen with such a negative lens.