Jenny Bathurst: "There, I said it. The C-word. I know - crazy"

As I write this, it is one month until Christmas. There, I said it. The C-word. I know - crazy. Although frankly, it feels as if the shops started parading their festive displays and products in July. And rather smugly, I can admit to having nearly purchased every gift for my friends and family. Don’t get me wrong, due to my health it has been entirely online shopping and thus it’s been quite a nice pastime scrolling through Amazon and the like, however it makes a welcome change to panic buying on December 23rd and praying my next day delivery Prime subscription will pay off.

However I can’t help but feel guilty as I add products and presents to my basket, knowing that this year will be trickier for many individuals than most past Christmases. Because Christmas isn’t just buying a few gifts and there ends the costs. No. Firstly there’s the food. And it’s not just Christmas dinner. There’s the overly expensive bizarrely flavoured crisps, the drink, the tins of tiny chocolates, and of course the endless varieties of cheese that are mainly filled with dried fruits that shouldn’t go near a block of cheddar.

Then of course the activities leading up to Christmas. Ice skating, festive cinema showings, Christmas markets where an organic-homemade-artisan-made with love-raw-vegan-gluten free brownie costs more than my life savings.

As a Christian I choose to especially focus on the miraculous event of Jesus’ birth in the festive period, but I would be lying if I said that I too didn’t get sucked into the festivities and traditions of the season. Over the years, society has created a Christmas that is becoming so unattainable for the average family to uphold. Even I was aghast when mum said that we’d be buying own-brand crisps this year rather than Pringles due to the rising prices, and I thought I was understanding. The festive season has become so commercialised, something that big brands and corporations know people will spend any amount of money on to make magical and special. In a year where even heating our homes is proving a struggle, there is no doubt that laying on a feast on the 25th isn’t going to be a walk in the park. But is there an end in sight? Not until our government decides to create one.