It’s Okay If You Can’t Afford To Buy Matching Pajamas For Xmas
By: Sumaiya Nacimulgani
Tags: Personal, Life, Christmas, Life Lessons, Inspiration

Image by Jonathon Borba on Unsplash

As the festive season is taking full force, many people are decorating, and buying presents, and looking forward to a holiday after a stressful year. 2020 has been full of ups and downs. Loss of lives, loss of jobs, and the pandemic have affected us all in some way or another.

One common thing I’ve noticed on Instagram recently is that Christmas is glorified as being materialistic. To have a beautifully decorated home, a family photo session, and matching pajamas are considered a Xmas tradition on social media.

I’m not trying to diffuse the Christmas spirit. I understand the joy behind decorating your home and baking cookies. It gives everyone a sense of fulfillment and happiness, as this festive season comes around once a year only!

However, for many people who are struggling financially, emotionally, or physically — the joy in doing these things doesn't exist.

We need to glorify the emotion and thoughtfulness behind the Christmas spirit

Due to the nature of social media, we have become obsessed with materialism. More than often, when we scroll on Instagram what do we see? Amazing homes, beautifully renovated, families taking photo sessions every month, buying incredible gifts, and getting hold of the latest gadgets.

The emotion, the thought, and pure love behind buying a gift or decorating your home for Christmas have somehow faded out. Many influencers will recommend gift ideas and Amazon shopping deal recommendations — but how many of them take a moment to tell you that it’s okay to not be like them?

Money Can’t Buy You Happiness And That’s Okay

There are thousands of families who are struggling to pay the bills and they feel the pressure to meet up with social media’s standards. Children are exposed to this lavish idea of having a wonderfully decorated home, a ton of presents, and the latest gadgets which puts pressure on the family bonding.

Teach your children the message behind Christmas. Teach them about the importance of love, emotions, family bonding, and caring for each other. Instill these values in your home, that love is not determined by how much money you can spend on making your home Instagram worthy or how many presents you can get.

When the focus shifts from materialism and onto the emotion, the love and care itself, everyone will feel included in the Christmas spirit. Parents shouldn’t feel the pressure to fall into debt in order to make their home feel Christmas-like for their kids.

It’s okay to not buy multiple presents for everyone. It’s okay to not have a big house with matching home decor. It’s okay if you can’t afford to buy huge Christmas decorations. It’s okay if you can’t afford to have a lavish home like Instagram influencers. It’s okay if you can’t bake cookies and buy store-bought ones. It’s okay if you can’t afford to give your family everything their heart desires.

And it’s definitely okay not to have matching Christmas pajamas. It doesn’t make you a failure. Your love, emotion, care, and hard work is what counts.

When your kids grow up, I promise you, they won’t remember the gift you gave them on their fifth Christmas, but rather, they will reflect back on how happy mom and dad were, how you sat together to play games, eat food, and enjoyed happy family times together.

Don’t let the filtered life of social media steal the joy from your home. Breathe, relax, and take in the festive spirit. Because gratefulness is the biggest gift we all have received this year. The pandemic has taught us a valuable lesson of how grateful we need to be for our lives and health, and we all pray that 2021 brings us immense joy and brings some normality back into our lives.