Yes, Virginia, there are people who hate Christmas

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Of course, that’s according to people who love Christmas. But yes, Virginia, there are people who hate Christmas. Like people who hate to give during this “givingest” time of the year because they hate being separated from their money. Just like the legendary Ebenezer Scrooge, the stingiest man alive in 19th-century London (but he eventually mended his ways after he was scared out of his wits by the ghosts of Christmases past, present, and future). However, our modern-day Scrooges are probably beyond scaring.

They hate the stress of having to look for the perfect gift for their not-so-perfect friends and family. Why you even have to give gifts to people you don’t really like (like your in-laws or your boss) is beyond them. One person who hates Christmas with a passion has come up with some cheap, crappy, sappy gift suggestions, like a really ugly tie, a cheap wine, a recycled fruitcake, or a plastic houseplant or maybe a one-way ticket to Pago Pago for your mother-in-law.

With Santa coming to town, people who hate Christmas cringe at the thought of a horde of godchildren and relatives coming to collect their gifts. So they skip town and hide in the boondocks until the coast is clear.

Some people hate Christmas because they loathe the crass commercialism of it all — the monstrous traffic jams, the crowded stores, the pushing and the shoving (’tis the season for pickpockets, too, so you’d better watch out), the infernal queue to the cash register, the full parking areas, the crowded restaurants, and the crowded restrooms that come during this not-at-all-wonderful time of the year. “You can’t even pee in peace,” says a really pissed-off Christmas shopper. So much for piss on earth!

On the other hand, there are people who love the commercial elements of the season but hate any celebration of Jesus (yes, they like Santa Claus and Rudolph but not the Child Jesus, the reason for the season). They have even taken Christ out of the celebration by calling it Xmas.

Environmentalists hate Christmas because of the carbon footprint and the trails of garbage it leaves behind.

There are people who hate Christmas Day because they have to work while everybody else is making merry. These include particularly those in the service/hospitality industry like hotels and restaurants; the health industry like hospitals and drugstores; the transportation industry; commercial establishments like malls, funeral parlors (death doesn’t go on a holiday), gasoline stations; media outfits (like this newspaper); public utilities, etc. For these people, Christmas is just another day; life goes on.

Believe it or not, some people hate Christmas because they hate those obligatory office Christmas parties. They just hate bonding with officemates, especially those they’d rather not associate with for the next 364 days of the year.

Yes, there are people who hate Christmas to death because the mere thought of family get-togethers — and all that schmaltzy stuff — is enough to give them the goose bumps. Someone averse to family reunions thinks it’s like water torture talking to family members you don’t really bother to talk to for the rest of the year.

And where there are family reunions, there’s bound to be a lot of food on the table. Which is why people on a perpetual diet just hate Christmas. How can you resist the urge to binge when you see food, glorious fattening food — and all those holiday goodies that are not good for the waistline — in every party/reunion you go to? The spirit is willing, but the flesh is too darn weak.

With family being the centerpiece of the season, everybody tries to be home for Christmas, wherever they are, whatever they’re doing. But this is not just possible for some people. Like the Filipinos living abroad, a lot of whom are OFWs, who must hate being separated from their loved ones at Christmas. Or those living behind bars who can only dream of sharing a noche buena at the family table, be it ever so humble, with their loved ones.

And then there are people who don’t really hate Christmas but the associations and contrasts of Christmas. Like people who have lost a loved one or experienced something traumatic once upon a bleak Christmas. The loss and the sad memories are heightened amid the happiest season of all that’s meant to be shared with kith and kin. For people who are alone and lonely, this loneliness is felt more sharply at Christmas. Because Christmas is about coming home and being with family, people who have broken homes dread Christmas like the plague. Likewise, the have-nots hate the thought of Christmas because their being poor is highlighted amid this season of plenty.

Fact is, in other parts of the world, some people succumb to seasonal affective disorder (SAD, indeed an apt acronym) around this time of the year. Experts explain that the bleak winter months bring on SAD and they believe that it is caused by hormonal changes. One theory suggests that reduced sunlight during the fall and winter months leads to reduced production of serotonin, the feel-good, soothing, calming neurotransmitter. Not enough of this in the brain can trigger feelings of depression. Carbohydrate-rich food (chips, cookies, etc.) can increase serotonin.

For those suffering from SAD this Christmas, Dr. Calvin Frederick, formerly of the National Institute of Mental Health, has this friendly word of advice: Stop putting pressure on yourself to be happy during the holidays. And stay away from people who depress you or make you sad.

For people who love to hate Christmas, Christmas will be blue. Make that dark blue.