Tammy Rainey, Mississippi GLBTQ Examiner
December 17, 2011
The cultural mythology built up in our society around the late-year holidays is inescapable. Beginning with Thanksgiving week and building steadily through the climactic joy of Christmas Day and winding up in the coda of New Year=s Eve socializing (and subsequent day of football parties) we are awash in around 40 days of feel-good merry making immortalized in song and story.
One local radio station begins in mid-November playing Christmas music 24/7 and one need only pay attention to the lyrics to pick up on the persistent theme. Oh sure, there's the occasional Blue Christmas bemoaning a lost love, or War is Over to provide a cautionary thought, but the overwhelming narrative is "everyone is happy, everyone is friendly, love and good will abound in all corners of creation" even though if you thought very deeply you would of course realize that reality does not always live up to that narrative (Black Friday behavior is an easy example).
Nevertheless, while we note that we fall short of our mythology and that the real world is a bit more gritty, a bit darker and less chipper than is implied by the traditional meme, it's still true that on an emotional level there's a pretty massive amount of pressure to be happy and make others happy. And that pressure is inseparably intertwined with the claim that these days cannot be truly happy unless shared with friends and family.
Read more at
http://www.examiner.com/glbtq-in-tupelo/alone-at-christmas (http://www.examiner.com/glbtq-in-tupelo/alone-at-christmas)
I'm prouder of this piece than any non-fiction I've ever written. i selfishly ask that if you agree with the sentiment that you publish it widely.
Nicely done, and you stayed away from that holiday suicide peek deal that everyone misquotes. It is a shame how many people have a place to go, if only their family would let them. Sad.