victory of the sun

When you hear Last Christmas for hell knows which time already, when you watch with weary eyes yet another bloody advertisement with Santas and reindeers telling you to be jolly and buy someone their product as a gift, when people whine about Kevin not being on TV, when your bus crawls through streets muddy with abused remnants of snow and you're already 15 minutes late to whatever place you're heading off to...

Stop for a while and remember one important thing.

This is not the true nature of Christmas.
I would not be hasty to condemn the ENTIRE Christmas time. There is a very important reason for which we gather in the warmth and safety of our houses - for this one moment in time we are together again, feasting and wishing each other the best.
We are, in fact, celebrating the winter solstice. Christmas occurs several days after it, also for a reason. The winter solstice is the longest night in the year, when the Sun stays in the sky for the shortest time. And a few days after, the days start getting longer again. This is exactly what we are celebrating - the Sun's victory against the growing darkness, the point in time where a new hope is born, the light that will yet save us from the cold, dark winter and bring Nature back to life.

I can't think of a culture that did not celebrate the two equinoxes and two solstices. It is important, especially in such a depressing season as winter, to cultivate this spark of hope, the memory of a warm light that will yet return to save us all.

Do not listen to these demons, peddlers of useless wares, do not listen to these insane people who sold the soul of Christmas for gold. Listen instead to your traditions, gather round in your families and sit by the table, reminisce of the past and hope for the future. Christ will be born again, if you believe that kind of thing - after all, Christians have the same idea, they just nicked it and put it differently.
The Sun will win.