Excess Christmas Wrongness

Pardon me, if you will, while I lament the Christmas dichotomy.

I was not raised a Christian, but we followed the traditions. I was raised not to follow Jesus but to worship Santa, the bringer of train sets. It was only later in life that I picked up a bible and the penny dropped. Don’t do the things that are bad for you, sin, and you suffer the consequences of having done the things that are bad for you. It seems obvious now, but anyway.

It turns out that there are 137 of these sins, but the ones that raise their heads at Christmas are obvious.

Gluttony is the big one. At this time of year we open our gullets to all manner of lavish self indulgence. I enjoy that.

Carousing. For the longest time, carousing was the best part of Christmas. For me.

Envy, coveting, greed. Everyone seems to be having a better Christmas… perhaps, perhaps not. The media machine seems hell bent in giving us this impression.

Drinking and drunkenness, also bad. It’s expensive, gives you hangovers, ill health, and a bunch of bad decisions. I can see why this is bad. I usually spend much of Christmas day inebriated, imbibing glass after glass while I prepare the Christmas dinner.

I take pride in my roast potatoes. My roast potatoes could stop wars, end all suffering, all pain, all disease, all poverty, all hunger. My roast potatoes really are that good. Pride goeth before a fall.

But what’s the alternative? A low effort Christmas dinner? Steamed Turnips? Who wants that? Surely we are allowed in moderation to indulge but once a year, at least.

My roast potatoes are amazing, I’m told.

I will have to ruminate on this matter further. It is a proper dichotomy.