Eddie Pola and George Wyle had it right when they wrote the classic "It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year." Forget papers, projects, finals and break. It's finally Christmas season, indeed the most wonderful of all.
There's only one problem with Christmas season at Notre Dame. It's just too short. Everyone is so stressed out with studying and anticipating Winter Break that many people forget to celebrate the jolly, joyful Christmas season.
When I stroll through the quad on a cold Tuesday night returning from the Library, LaFortune or the dining hall, I should see residence halls bedazzled with Christmas lights, inflatable Santa Clauses the size of King Kong dominating the landscape and "White Christmas" being blared so loud that I can hear Bing Crosby's voice echoing all the way across campus.
But, as it is, I resign myself to a string of lights strung around an anonymous third floor window, a miniature Christmas tree on the end table in an office, and ugly Christmas sweater parties with cold, carbonated beverages rather than hot cocoa beings.
There are glimmers of hope in the bleak Indiana landscape, however. North Dining Hall and South Dining go crazy with the Christmas decorations, which really gets my holiday-loving blood pumping, and some dorms do indeed go all out. But it's just not what it could be.
So, on behalf of all Christmas season lovers, I implore you, students of Notre Dame and Saint Mary's, take some time out of your busy pre-finals lives and celebrate. Indulge in your guilty pleasure by listening to the Backstreet Boys' Christmas album while you bury your head in that Chemistry textbook. Read not by the light of a desk lamp, but by a string of white lights decorating your loft. Bake cookies for your friends. If you are a guy and don't know how to bake, beg your female friends to bake them for you. When you go the dining hall, don't leave without a delicious cup of hot chocolate warming your hands as you brave the wind chill on your trek back to your dorm. Sing in the shower. As Buddy the Elf says, "The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear."
If it makes it easier, start early next year. As you wind down before Thanksgiving break, take a few hours to blast Michael Bublé Christmas on Pandora and hang up some decorations. Then, when you come back to campus, a Christmas wonderland will await, just in time to get you into the mood.
We only have three weeks to enjoy the season, don't let the stress of your college existence weigh you down. Don't wait until finals are over to let your guard down and enjoy the season.
The views expressed in the Inside Column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.
Contact Matthew Robison at mrobison@nd.edu
