Christmas !

In the western world, this is the one day of the year when the shops are closed and the only day that no newspaper waits on the doorstep when we awake.  When we open Christmas presents a lack of batteries may send some searching for the odd petrol station or corner store that may still be trading. It is a religious holiday in what is now an unreligious world.

Each year many of the traditional Christmas events and practices dwindle further.   We used to receive Christmas cards in the post from distant friends, but today that is more likely to take the form of an email.   There are still many families that insist that Christmas dinner follow the traditional style where Christmas falls in winter and serve up turkey with all the trimmings, followed by a plum pudding. In the hot Australian summer that is fast changing to prawns and a few beers at a BBQ.

Christmas is supposed to be a season of goodwill and yet for many it will be a tragedy.   The movement of people on holiday means the roads will be crowded with cars and crashes are inevitable. There is always an upsurge in death and serious injuries during the Christmas break and the police urge us to be careful - but few listen.   It also usually brings an increase in domestic violence in many households.  A mix of over indulgence in alcohol and the financial pressures of Christmas create tensions that result in a very unhappy festive season for some people.

Unfortunately, Christmas is a miserable time for children in households where money is very scarce and presents are an impossible luxury.  Even having any sort of Christmas dinner relies on the goodwill of one of the charities and that depends entirely on donations from the public.   In the days before Christmas those charities are busy delivering food items that make all the difference - and high on the list is a small present to delight the children of families doing it hard.

Christmas and Easter are now the only times when we see a vast surge in church attendance.  A lot has changed since we became a multicultural country that welcomed other religions.  We seem to assume that Christian icons would be offensive to those of other faiths and even the word " Christmas " is often avoided and replaced with " Holiday season ".  Nativity scenes have disappeared from shop windows and carol singing has been condensed into a single event.  The practice of street decorations is now muted.

The commercial world continues to encroach on Christmas.  Boxing day sales mean many shop employees need to work on Christmas day to get the stock ready and emergency services like hospitals, fire services and the police must remain on duty.

Christmas in Australia is ever changing and will no doubt continue that change into the future. Hopefully we will never reach the day when as we knock off for the Christmas break we cease to wish friends and work colleagues a " MERRY CHRISTMAS "  !