First of all, Happy New Year! :D It’s officially 2017, and I’m sure we’re all ready to wear our snazzy new clothes and wear that awesome new makeup we got for Christmas…but it’s sad that Christmas is over already. By the time you’ll be reading this, is at least January 2 or 3. But I’m writing this on December 29, four days after Christmas, and it already doesn’t feel like Christmas anymore.

Sure, it’s snowing right now. But radio stations have stopped playing Christmas music, decorations are being taken down in stores and homes. It’s just…over.

And yes, I know, it’s not Christmas Day anymore, but I feel like we should celebrate it longer than a day, even if you don’t believe in the religious aspects of it. It’s a time of love and family and hanging out in pjs listening to music and drinking hot cocoa in front of the fire. We have this huge buildup to it from Thanksgiving Day to Christmas Eve. From the sales and the music, to the TV shows that are older than me, the excitement of buying your loved ones something awesome, and don’t forget the food, Christmas is practically everywhere. We’re basically inhaling Christmas sparkles by the time we go to bed Christmas Eve night. But than all that magic is gone by the time we go to sleep on Christmas Day.

If we’re going to have all this hype around Christmas, can’t we celebrate it a little longer? Play the music a few more days, keep the garlands and mistletoe hanging over our doors for a little while longer? Christmas is supposed to be this magical time of year, where you can practically see the love floating past, where snow sparkles in the light of the decorations outside, and everyone is kind to each other. It’s exciting, heartwarming, magical. And we all know how the world oftentimes is not that way. So why can’t we sit in this little bubble of brightness for more than a day?

I know we all want to get on to the next best thing, and our lives often move faster than a train going full speed ahead. But we all need a break every so often, otherwise we burn ourselves out. And what better time to take that break around Christmas, when a lot of us have some time off and we’re with our families? It’s the most wonderful, most magical time of year. Let’s not waste that time. Let’s bask a little longer in this small bubble of light and goodness, full of decorations and laughter and lots of good food, before we have to go back to reality.