Gimme A Break!

No sooner has the sparkle and glow of Christmas been swiped from our view, than the hearts of Valentine’s Day are massed over shop fronts. Abruptly after love or friendship is affirmed, Easter eggs and buns are pelted at us from all corners! It seems businesses are so focussed on being the first to offer the indicators of the next festivity that the celebration itself is being lost. It is becoming more of a process as each special day blurs into a continuous line of purchasing, giving, and socialising.

Stores are now advertising for caring parents to layby their children’s Christmas toys in July!  Yes, we promote “Christmas In July” here in Australia, to enjoy those traditional lunches in the cool of Winter, but some marketers are being just a little too literal!

When we see the Christmas trees being ripped from their moorings before the day itself, so that shops can set up for the Boxing Day sales on Christmas Eve, haven’t things become just a bit too expedient, at the cost of the celebration itself? When I saw a distraught little girl witness the trees’ early demise and have to be consoled by her mum, that Christmas WASN’T over yet, things need to be turned back again.

The occasions themselves are enriching and fun, but the continuous marketing is not. The advertisers and the businesses need to remember we need time between special days. Time to feel the warmth and appreciate the good of these important times, or lament the disappointments holiday times can also throw at us! Time for the overly thrifty or those without sentiment to regift and recover from the hangover of goodwill.

It’s time!

About the author:

Jo

Talking about the world with my beautiful daughter, thinking broadly with analysis and humour, I enjoy what words can convey! Having lived in many places, and having done a great variety of things, these experiences have given me diversity and a rich source of inspiration! With fifteen years experience, teddy bears and antiques are a favourite hobby!