UNITED STATES—Let’s face it, there are quite a few holidays inAmerica that are not holidays to say the least. They are days to generate business. We will in a world where money is the ultimate commodity, and as consumers we are constantly falling for ”Ëœwhat’ is being told to us.
What ignited this conversation for me? Well, I was watching something on the news about a florist’s shop on the issue of Valentine’s Day. What struck me was the owner’s admission that Valentine’s Day is a must; you have to spend money on your boyfriend, girlfriend, fiancé or husband/wife. Really? Who in the world ”Ëœsays’ you must?
Oh yeah, that’s right, consumerism says so, and we are consistently falling for this illusion. To me, Valentine’s Day is all about love; so if that’s true, why in the world do we have to set aside a particular day in the year to honor love? Shouldn’t this be something we should do everyday? In no shape or form am I against Valentine’s Day, I just find the notion that we get caught up in these ”Ëœholidays’ as a ridiculous notion to make money. The same will be said for Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Christmas; I mean the list goes on and on. We spend money because a particular holiday says we should do so. Why is this notion engrained in our brains? Is it possible for us to eliminate such thinking tactics from our psyche?
Apparently not, as we’ve become so programmed to doing so, it’s impossible to shake such a feeling at this point in my opinion. If you walk into a retail shop, it’s obvious the constant trend for the upcoming holiday is already being prepped. Valentine’s Day is out, but guess what is around the corner St. Patrick’s Day, and then we have Easter, can’t forget Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year and The Super Bowl.
Are you getting my point? It’s a revolving door. The blueprint has already been set for us to spend our money, but do we often ask ourselves exactly what are we spending the money on? Is it to spend time with family or just something we’ve become accustomed to doing? I’d argue for the latter. There is no telling how much cash was spent this past Valentine’s Day on flowers, cards, candy, multiplexes and dinner. Now think about all the money we could be spending on more essential things: bills, student loans, groceries, college tuition, healthcare, taxes, etc. Things that we actually need to do versus things that are not as important as we’d like to believe are.
Hallmark holidays are important to celebrate, but we should not become so overindulged buying things to show our appreciation or to make businesses richer than what they already are. Why am I arguing this? Well, think of it this way: it’s just a matter time every single holiday is a full-blown day where all workers are required to work in the essence of generating even more money.
