I read online that there has been a big ice storm in the Midwest, and my mom says that she has 10 inches of snow on her driveway, and more on the way. It’s hard to imagine from here. Today was somewhere around 80 degrees, a few high clouds, and a slight breeze. A lovely beginning to summer, in my opinion!
But it’s also hard to realize that Christmas is right around the corner. I mean, it’s only a few days away, and we are going to the swimming pool everyday. Definitely one of the harder adjustments for me.
Imagine Christmas without “Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow!” Imagine the Christmas decoration aisle at the store right next to the lawn chairs and pool accessories. Imagine kids getting out of school for summer break a few days before Christmas. That’s what we are experiencing here.
But not everything about Christmas is different here. Some things, especially the imported North American consumerism parts of Christmas, are still (laughably) the same. Santa still wears a thick coat, even at the mall where the A/C is on because it’s so hot. The coolest Christmas tree for sale at the store drops artificial snow from the top into an inverted umbrella at the bottom, creating the sensation that the tree is growing in some outdoor place in the northern hemisphere. “Christmas” songs still play in English in the stores, “Jingle Bells”, “Good King Wenseslas”, “Frosty the Snowman”, etc. Did you ever notice how many of them are really not about the holiday, but just about the weather?
The only place that seems to have made some attempt to reconcile this dichotomy is Starbucks. Starbucks in Chile has the red and white signs with candy canes (nowhere to be seen here, by the way) and wrapped packages, but no snow or mittens. The people in the ads wear shorts and ride their bikes through a park of evergreens. The ads don’t hawk caramel apple cider or peppermint hot cocoa, but rather dulce de leche Frappuccinos and other cold drinks. It’s Christmas, but it’s Christmas in Chile, and it makes me want to buy more Starbucks just because they actually put thought into their ads.
Here’s to a great holiday, wherever you are. Cheers!
