I wrote last year about how much I love Christmas but this year there’s a sense of wastefulness about it all. The RPI (Retail Price Index) is way out of sync with many people’s salaries (including mine) and I’m still confused as to why two years ago I put the heating on when it was cold and now I only put it on when I can no longer feel my fingers. Last weekend I threw this energy price panic to the wind at my Christmas drinks party when I kept the heating on all evening and pushed one of my guests close to fainting. Turns out everyone had been super warm but were so grateful for the heat they’d been afraid to switch on in their own homes that they were reluctant to admit they were quietly overheating. But I digress.
many of my African friends talk about how the focus at Christmas lands more on food than gifts
Because everything seems so spenny atm, the usual overindulgence we’ve come to expect at this time of year is fast becoming society’s biggest faux pas and it’s now more than a little passé to be doing the most for Christmas. I hosted an episode on Christmas for the Woman Alive podcast (produced by Premier Radio) recently and my two guests talked about the pressure the felt regarding gift giving as well as all the other propaganda we’re sold to believe is important for three days of festivities. I’m Nigerian (when it suits me) and many of my African friends talk about how the focus at Christmas lands more on food than gifts and when you know in these cultures how many people can just show up at your house uninvited, this makes sense. Much easier to make rice and plantain go further than a set of pre-personalised stockings. But here in the UK we go crazy for gifts.
I remember being at an extended family gathering one year and watching the youngest members of the family (aged between 2-5) crying uncontrollably surrounded by what well-meaning gift givers had had carefully wrapped up at department store counters around the country. They were crying because they were overwhelmed. It was all too much for them and, having observed them, too much for their parents who were expected to remember who gave what and arrange a handwritten thank you card to arrive no later than a week into January.
But at Christmas I “forget” the debilitating pain that has sometimes ensued when I f**k with (cow’s) dairy
Food can also get a bit cray-cray. For most of the year, my diet is almost completely dairy-free (only from cows though, my body seems very happy with the produce of goats, sheep and ewes). But at Christmas I “forget” the debilitating pain that has sometimes ensued when I f**k with (cow’s) dairy as I throw down my credit card for Baileys, brandy cream and cheeseboards. And why not? It’s Christmaaaaaas after all! And the elation lasts but a moment as, with all such indulgences, there is a comedown which comes with less sexy side effects.
But if we give up present giving and excessive food digestion, then what, I hear you gasp, is left of Christmas?! Are we to make do with Elf on the Shelf (I honestly don’t know what this is but if you have children under 10, you probably do), crappy Christmas crackers, boring board games and waiting around for the King’s Speech? Maybe. Christmas 2023 could also be a chance to reinvent the wheel. What if you gave yourself the choice for how you want to spend the season? And hey, if you do manage to save some money in other areas, maybe you can afford to put your heating on after all…
Tola x
Tola Doll Fisher is the editor and creative director at Premier Woman Alive and co-host of the YouTube show Sisterhood. In 2019, Tola delivered a TEDx Talk on Debunking the Myth of Success and her debut non-fiction book, 'Still Standing:100 Lessons From An 'Unsuccessful' Life' (SPCK) is out now. Tola also writes weekly essays on life lessons, based on the themes in her book.