Christmas Spirit
"Dear Santa, this year I've been a good kid. I want a mountain bike, an electric scooter, a new phone, a new bed, new shoes, and some money to help. My shoe size is 19, shirt XL (16/18), and pants boys (31/30). I've prepared some cookies and milk at my fireplace just for you if you ever come across my house. Love you."
This Christmas letter is sent to Santa Claus by 10-year-old Terrance. Terrance is one of the million children who send a letter to Santa Claus to fulfill his Christmas wish. Every year, young children continue to sit down with paper, a pencil, or a crayon and write a letter to Santa Claus in which they express their gratitude for all that he has done for them throughout the year, as well as their accomplishments and the reasons they are deserving of the gifts they have requested.
Children often depict Santa as a chubby, cheery, rosy-cheeked man with a white beard who drives a flying sleigh loaded with gift sacks and pulled by magical flying reindeer. Children will pull up an all-nighter, prepare baked cookies on a plate served with hot chocolate milk and hide somewhere near the fireplace to take a glimpse of Santa. Their eyes sparkle with Christmas spirit, eager to receive a bundle of joys and a genuine handwritten letter from Santa himself, delivered to their home and addressed to them directly.
Why do children wholeheartedly believe in some fantasies about an old man riding a sleigh from the North Pole, sending gifts to every household each year in one single night without any compensation? During childhood, the boundaries of fantasy and reality are obscure. The magic and spirit of Christmas have been a long-lasting tradition since the 1800s. Parents and relatives pass down stories of Santa Claus from one generation to another which became a reliable source for them. Incorporating stories of Santa Claus into Christmas creates a more joyful and ecstatic Christmas experience. A shared belief among children and parents will strengthen their bonds when sharing a memorable and cherishing long-lasting memory together about Christmas.
As we grow older, our thoughts become more mature as we can differentiate what's wrong and right, what to believe and what not to believe. Nonetheless, the Christmas tradition persists, albeit knowing the truth of the non-existence of Santa Claus. Christmas songs and sales are everywhere, families cook feats for dinner, and gifts are being exchanged among the adults. Despite knowing the truth about the non-existence of Santa Claus as we grow older, why is Christmas still a well-celebrated festive holiday season?
The Purpose of Christmas
The main reason for celebrating Christmas is to worship the birth of Messiah Jesus Crist. It is the anniversary celebration of His birth. According to Christian belief, Lord Jesus Christ was born on 25 December, which everyone came to know as Christmas. The good news was spread from the angel and then from mouth to mouth. Everyone celebrated with joy when hearing the news, as the birth of Jesus gave them hope and faith.
As time proceeded, Christmas was given a different meaning for people. In 2019, more than nine in ten Americans polled by Gallup said they celebrate Christmas—but just 35 percent said they saw the holiday as strongly religious. Festive music like "All I want for Christmas is You" by Mariah Carey, "It's Beginning to Look a Lot like Christmas" by Michael Bublé, et cetera, and the movie "Polar Express" is being streamed worldwide during Christmas. Feasts are being prepared by families. Exchanging gifts between friends and family has become the norm. Christmas trees and Santa Claus have become the icon of the festival. Colourful lights have been a part of the festival to light up the long, dark winter nights and give hope. The decorations and lighting create a joyful atmosphere and provide an awestruck view for the crowd. With its mishmash of pagan and religious traditions, the holiday offers something—whether holy or not—for everyone who celebrates it.
The Warwick Christmas
The Christmas holiday season was unique yet memorable for me this year. Christmas was around the corner, but I was not keen to celebrate it. To pursue my studies overseas, leaving my country, Malaysia, family, and friends was a tough decision. Without them, Christmas does not feel the same. The campus became dull and empty as everyone left to find their families or travelled back to their homeland to celebrate Christmas. I was expecting a lonely Christmas celebration without gifts and cards. Perhaps, 'Lonely Christmas' by Eason Chan, a Chinese singer, would be my Christmas song anthem.
Friendship is what made my Christmas more festive when I thought my Christmas spirit had vanished. My campus friends did not go home, so we celebrated it together. To spice things up, we decided to play Secret Santa. The rules are simple. Members of a group of friends, family, or co-workers draw random names to become someone's Secret Santa. The Secret Santa is given a period to prepare a gift of their own choice or what suits best for their chosen giftee. After opening their present, the giftee must guess which member was their Secret Santa. You're not allowed to reveal whose Secret Santa you are until it's time to open the gifts.
It was a cryptic and exhilarating game because we had to prepare the gift secretly, without exposing your giftee, while guessing your Secret Santa before the revealing ceremony. To add the cherry on top, everyone gets a gift! The variety of presents ranges from bath soaps, handmade gifts, clothes, and even Alexa. We had a heart-warming Christmas feast consisting of oven-baked turkeys with gravy, pigs in blankets, and cookie dough for desserts. The atmosphere was filled with Christmas songs to create a Christmas ambiance. Everyone was immersed in the situation, chit-chatting until late morning as if the night was still young. Somehow, the Christmas spirit sealed in my heart was unleashed, rekindled, and burning brighter than ever. Even though we had only known each other for three months, they made my Christmas even merrier than ever!
ASEAN’s Christmas
Let's switch the topic a bit. We'll be looking at how ASEAN countries perceive Christmas. Some ASEAN countries have adopted Christmas as an official holiday, but in most of them, it’s rather a secular event and not a religious one. In big Asian cities, however, you can often see lavish Christmas decorations, hear Christmas carols, or even meet Santa Claus and have a photo.
Among all the ASEAN countries, Christmas is the most well-celebrated among the Philippines. Did you know that Philippines have the longest Christmas on Earth? As Asia's first and only Catholic nation, the Philippines celebrates Christmas not only for a day, but for a whole three months! Christmas season takes place in the 'ber months,' from SeptemBER to DecemBER. Filipinos value family reunions seriously during Christmas. With many Filipinos living outside the country as foreign workers or as immigrants, as well as those working in other cities, the long Christmas season is an anticipation of families getting back together. The three-month-long Christmas season gives Filipinos enough time to prepare for their Christmas vacation, from booking their flights to working overtime to save more money for Christmas gifts. In addition, one of the most popular decorations in the Philippines is the parol, a bamboo pole or frame with a lighted star lantern on it to represent the star that guided the biblical Wise Men. Most people stay up all night on Christmas Eve into Christmas Day, with Christians attending 'Simbang Gabi,' or Christmas Eve mass, followed by a midnight feast called Noche Buena. The long Christmas sets the mood for giving, charity, and love for one another that will climax at Noche Buena.
After all, this is a Western holiday, which does play a vital role in Asian marketing — big shopping centres don’t miss the chance to introduce various sales and events during those occasions. ASEAN countries like Singapore, Malaysia, Myanmar, Indonesia, Laos, and Thailand have a more commercialized Christmas. Malls are decked with glittery tinsel, twinkling fairy lights in bulk to catch the eye of passers-by, joyful Christmas songs broadcast all over the mall, and cheap Christmas sales. The destinations to visit during Christmas are Orchard Road and Gardens by the Bay in Singapore, I-city, Pavillion Shopping Centre and Genting Highland in Malaysia, Yangon in Myanmar, Kepanjan Church and Trans Snow World in Indonesia, Sansiri Winter Market and ICONSIAM in Thailand. One interesting fact about Indonesia is that Santa Claus is also called 'Sinterklass' (that's because Indonesia used to be ruled by The Netherlands).
In Vietnam, Christmas eve is more important than Christmas day itself. Christmas isn't an official public holiday in Vietnam, and the citizens think it's only a holiday for Christians. Young People go to Ho Chi Minh City, where there is a Catholic Cathedral, to celebrate Christmas Eve. All churches, and some Christian homes, will have a nativity crib scene or crèche, the scene of Jesus Christ's Birth. Many Catholic churches have big wall paintings with nearly life-size statues of Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, the shepherds, and animals. Vietnam has a special Christmas Eve meal called 'réveillon' (influenced by France) and has a 'bûche de Noël' (a chocolate cake in the shape of a log) for dessert. Vietnamese people like to give presents of food, and at Christmas, a bûche de Noël is a popular gift.
On the contrary, Brunei doesn't celebrate Christmas. As shocking as it sounds, Brunei banned Christmas celebrations since 2015 as two-thirds of Brunei’s population are Muslims. Christians living in Brunei can still go to church for special services and celebrate with friends and family at home. Communities with high concentrations of Christians are allowed to decorate if the authorities are alerted first and if they provide permission. Those who break the rules on these could be fined 20,000 Brunei dollars or serve a jail term of up to five years, according to provisions in its Syariah Penal Code Order 2013 law. The institution was proposed to prevent damage to the Islamic faith of Brunei.
Everyone celebrates Christmas in their own unique way. Some people prefer to celebrate by throwing parties, attending family get-togethers, chatting with friends, shopping, relaxing in the cabin, or not celebrating it at all. Nonetheless, I would like to share this short Christmas poem with you.
To believe in making wishes and have faith that they come true
To believe that you can find some joy in everything you do.
To believe in giving gladly, for no reason, just because
To believe in love...
That's what it means to believe in the Christmas spirit.
The true Christmas spirit is putting others' happiness before your own and finding you've never known such happiness. Christmas is the season of giving without a thought of getting. Appreciate every present you receive despite what it turns out to be. May this spirit and tradition be passed down to posterity. Remember to wish Merry Christmas to your family and to your ho-ho-homies! Cheers to an ever-lasting Christmas celebration across all walks of life.