Lately I’ve been feeling a bit like this deer on the left. Seeing everyone who seems to be doing amazingly well, be it friends, family or just contacts / acquaintances on Instagram for example. And no matter how hard I try, I just never feel like I measure up and am up to speed and achieving the standards being set by the people I see. I always do my best, but I never get there. So I haven’t been writing much, or playing bass, reading, I’ve been pretty listless and doing nothing very much while feeling like anything that I CAN do isn’t going to be good enough anyway. I’ve been infected by the social media bug!
But I’m trying to take a step back and, like the deer, realise that looks can be deceiving. I’m trying to see the effort being put into “looking good” without actually BEING good, in and of oneself. It takes so much effort to look “put together” when you’re really just trying to hide the tears with makeup, dry shampoo and tie your hair back for the photo because you haven’t showered in days. We’re all being brainwashed and controlled to spend time trying to look good so we all compete at these things, when we’re not really getting anything out of it. Social media is making us compete in a non-existent competition which takes up so much of our time that we can’t really focus on the things that REALLY do matter.
So as we’re approaching December and entering the advent period, a time when we usually all end up stressing about trying to have the best decorations, the best lights, the best presents, best food, tidiest house, most presents… Lets remember that actually Christmas isn’t about decorations, or lights, presents, food, Christmas trees… It isn’t even (for me at least) about reindeer! This time next year, maybe that games console is going to be obsolete, you’ll have dropped and broken that shiny new phone, if you’re anything like me, you’ll have eaten the chocolate and regretted it because you now feel fat compared with your “perfect” (but not really) friends.
This year, lets instead try to think about the things that matter. This time next year, your grandparents, your parents, maybe your friends… They might not all be here. It’s a real possibility. So instead of focusing on the mundane, try to focus on the emotions, the spirits (not alcoholic ones!) the feelings you get when you’re with the people that really matter. Because at the end of the day, the wonderful day with your parents that you remember for the rest of your life, you don’t remember feeling like your haircut was wrong, or your nails were chipped. You remember how you felt with your family. You remember the fun, the laughter, the love. You remember how you felt with those special people around you.
So as it’s getting close to a time when we can all make amazing memories and we usually get together with family and friends around Christmas, lets try to see things how they really are. Don’t be sucked in by the impression that everything is perfect, because it really isn’t for any of us. Focus on the time and the experiences you’re sharing with the people most important to you and make memories together, that’s what REALLY matters. For me, Christmas begins with my Family on Christmas Eve, with this legend. EVERY year since I was born and indeed, every year since the films release in 1982.
