Christmas cheer declines as students get older

Freshman Atulya Vishwanath fondly remembers Christmas when he was in elementary school.

“When I was 7, I used to write letters and put out milk and cookies for Santa. In the morning, I was so excited because the cookies and milk was gone and presents were under the tree and there was a note written by Santa,” Vishwanath said.

But starting in middle school, Vishwanath’s Christmas traditions changed.

“I don’t do any of those things anymore, and my parents just get me gifts and put them in a bag,” Vishwanath said.

As kids have grow older, their vibrant imaginations have been replaced with less involved celebrations that somehow aren’t quite as exciting as before.

“When you’re a kid, Christmas is so magical because you expect Santa Claus and all these great presents,” junior Adriana Ivanko said. “But when you get older, your parents don’t really invest that much time.”

For many students, holiday traditions have changed, but not in a good way. Oftentimes, students have stopped decorating.

“We used to plan a Sunday when we’d all be free and decorate the tree and house together,” freshman Kevin Lian said. “Now, we’ve stopped decorating our house, and we don’t really decorate the tree as a family anymore. Only occasionally, one of us might put an ornament on the tree.”

However, even more than decorating, presents are what keep children excited as the holiday season draws near.

“I was really excited [for my gift] when I was little since it would be a surprise, but now I just ask for something and I get it,” junior Caroline Chou said.

For Ivanko, it is not the value of the present that matters, but the effort that is put in when someone searches for the perfect gift.

“[When I was a child], we were allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve and we’d get all excited. The next morning, we’d sit around the tree and open presents all day,” Ivanko said. “Now, I just get money. I miss the excitement of opening the presents and guessing what the present was.”

This decline in Christmas spirit could be attributed to the busy life of a high school student.

“When I was younger, I got a lot more excited, but now I’m just not that willing to make as much effort,” junior Shireen Kaul said. “It is hard to find time to do Christmas-y activities with all my classes and extracurriculars.”

Even though Christmas spirit has waned, some people have kept their Christmas spirit alive.

“I still have a lot of Christmas spirit even after I found out Santa Claus wasn’t real,” Vishwanath said.

“My Christmas spirit never really came from him; it is mostly just this time of year that gets my spirits up. I look forward to Christmas every year.”