It’s not that I don’t like Christmas music, though I’m going to bah and humbug my way through this month.
I liked it too much.
Now… it’s become something different.
Think about it for a minute. If you actually played one version of all the “traditional” Christmas songs back to back, you’d have a playlist that lasted maybe two or three hours.
And that playlist is playing on repeat in nearly every store, every cafeteria, every mall, every waiting area, and even public areas.
For a month.
I’m just old enough to remember when music wasn’t quite so portable. When it wasn’t quite so ubiquitous. When hearing your favorite carol or Christmas song was unusual, and something special… not an experience that you could count on happening within an hour or two.
And the way that Christmas music has tentacled its way into every bit of the background of our lives has robbed it of that specialness, of that reverence.
Regardless of one’s faith tradition (or even a lack thereof), it’s a good thing to stop and reflect every once in a while. It’s a good thing to have a ritual, a special event where you have to reflect.
Maybe that’s a church service. Maybe that’s looking at lights in your living room or driving around the neighborhood. It can be anything.
Even hearing your favorite Christmas song for the first time that season.
But for it to be special, it can’t just be commonplace. It can’t be the background to everyday life.
And that’s what Christmas music has become.
And to that, I say humbug indeed.