Honors College Art & Science of Emotions Fall 2017 (1:20 p.m.) Sadness Journal | Page 7

‘Tis the Season to be Jolly?
By: Patrick McBride
In our society, there are preconceived notions re-
garding the holidays and how we’re supposed to experi-
ence them. It is supposed to be ‘the most wonderful time
What you think Thanksgiving will be like:
of the year’, filled with happiness and joy. You’re sup-
posed to be surrounded by your family and you’re sup-
posed to be happy while doing it. Everything is supposed
to go perfect and you’re supposed to be unconditionally
happy. In our society, there are people trying to make a
What Thanksgiving is actually like:
buck off everything. The people trying to make money
create unrealistic expectations for what we’re supposed to experience and sucker us into buying their
products in order to achieve that unattainable holiday happiness. Christmas is one of the biggest money-
makers of the year. People are spending a lot of money to buy gifts for loved ones in order to make them
happy. There are a wide variety of emotions felt during the holidays, but the one that is almost never ac-
cepted is sadness.
One of the ways holidays make us unhappy is because of the tremendous amount of stress and
pressure that comes with them. Hosting a holiday is extremely stressful. Making sure you cook enough
food for the whole family and decorating the house so it feels like the holidays is important. We’re sup-
posed to dress for the occasion instead of just being comfortable. It is very important that we maintain the
appearance associated with the ideal holiday and if we deviate from expectations, we are socially repri-
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