What I Think about the Commercialization of Christmas

So often we hear in cartoons, commercials, songs, editorials, etc. about how Christmas is becoming too commercialized. By that, I mean, we focus more energy and emphasis on the greatest sales, sales pitches, deals and gimmicks that can be created during the season. We care more about the stuff and the toys and the trinkets and getting the best deal for any of it. Worst of all, we become slaves to the latest trends, focusing time and effort to get the latest fad, the most popular toy or gadget on the market. This often leads to stress, anxiety, seasonal affective disorder, greater frustration and in the end forgetting "the reason for the Season." So, if someone were to ask me, "Do you think Christmas is becoming too commercialized?" I would answer simply ...

NO.

No, you ask? But, Brad, check out the endless stream of commercials emphasizing the best sales! Black Friday! Cyber-Monday! Look how frustrated people are in lines, entering malls and stressing out over shopping lists! How can you see all these things and think the Christmas season hasn't been commercialized?

Well, I can certainly see from that list alone how businesses are taking advantage of the season to benefit their own profit margins, and why not? That's what a free market is based on.

But, ask yourselves this ... what do all of those things have in common? Stores are trying to get you to buy from them. Okay, good. Now, why are you buying things? Are you buying things for yourself? Sure, some deals are too hard to pass up. But, if you peaked into the tents out front of Best Buy and asked anyone spending their Thanksgiving night inside, the majority of them will mention someone else.

That is where I think the argument of over-commercialism fails. Despite all the sales pitches, catchy tunes and endless commercials, consider the simple motivation of the buyer. The buyer is looking to buy something for someone else. That is an act of love. And love, my friends, is at its core what the Christmas season is all about. It's not about getting the best deal or even the best gift, it's about caring about another person enough to give them the gift. It's about putting the happiness of others over our own. It's about performing selfless acts of love. Sure, the wise man probably got a heck of deal for that bottle of myrrh back in the day, but do we remember the deal he got or the gift he gave and the sentiment behind it? That's my point.

Looking back on the past five Christmases, do you remember standing in line for two hours and saving 20% on that Star Wars toy, or do you remember the look on the kid's face when he opened the gift? How about the look on his face as he played with it over the next twelve months?

As long as we recognize, hopefully to a greater degree that we do today, that with every gift we give ... from the change in the red bucket to the largest present under the tree ... we are performing acts of love for another person. That is the essence of the Christmas season and the true nature of the Christmas Spirit.

Next time you watch the commercials that you think are over-commercializing the season, take a closer look at what they're depicting. It's not people excited about the prospect of a great savings or a deal for that trinket. Focus instead on the last five seconds of the commercial (the part the company doesn't make money from) and look at the faces of the people who are so happy receiving their gift.

That's the Spirit of Christmas at work. Remember that as you're standing in line, fighting traffic, watching television and making plans this month. You may be tired at the end of the day, but you'll feel 1000 times better if you remember why you did it and how wonderful it feels to show love to other people.