By Olivia Haveron
Two thousand twenty has been an indescribable year of pandemic chaos; however, even though the pandemic still ravages on, Santa Claus is coming to town. Coronavirus has affected our lives in unimaginable ways. For the first time possibly ever, we are unable to spend time with our families this holiday season.
Our Quarantine Christmas might be a little different than years past, but COVID Christmas cards will keep the spirits up and the laughs coming, while also depicting a deep, personal side. This year more than ever, it is necessary to spread the Christmas spirit and to make everyone feel just a little bit better this holiday season.
While you could go out and buy a card, it’s also simple to make your own creative, punny cards. According to PaperlessPost.com, acknowledging that we’re living through a global pandemic allows for people to come together, giving everyone a “We’re all in this together” mentality. The website has given some funny messages if you can’t think of any yourself. Some of these include New Year? Yes, Please! Or All I Want for Christmas is a Vaccine. My personal favorite is You’re essential to us.
These are some of the basics, but PunkPost breaks it down even further. Some might want to let their loved ones miss them, especially since Ms. Rona has kept us from our family this year. This is known as the “I Miss You Like the Grinch Misses Cindy Loo” card. Humor also makes it very easy to cope during hard times, which is the reason for “Hit ‘Rona Right in the Funny Bone” because let’s be honest, COVID memes are one of the only things getting us through 2020.
Many individuals are making the most out of their Christmas cards this year, especially since there is more time now than ever to get creative. Multiple families on Long Island have created holiday cards that truly capture 2020 in hopes of lightening the mood of this year. The Seus family parodied the Brady Bunch crew. The Westfal-Heany crew set up their holiday themed Zoom with the caption “Just zooming in to send you the Merriest of wishes for a wonderful Christmas and a Happy, Healthy New Year!” The large variety of cards thrive on masks, social distancing, and a bunch of holiday joy.
And not only are these holiday cards enjoyable to create, they help to promote mask mandates in some parts of the country. COVID cases, similar to most of the United States, have been surging drastically in Oklahoma. To combat this major outbreak, the First Unitarian Church of Oklahoma City are spearheading “Cards Against COVID.” This holiday campaign aims to tackle Governor Kevin Stitt’s refusal to impose a statewide mask mandate. These cards are directly being sent to Stitt and include messages such as “Mandate Masks for joy, hope, and care for all!” Some take on a classic Christmas tune: “I’ll stay home for Christmas. You can count on me! Please have snow and mistletoe. I wish Earth was Covid-free ... Christmas Eve will find me, cuddled with my closest dears. Oh I'll stay home for Christmas. Your mask mandate is my dream!"
While Stitt has stated that a statewide mask mandate is not in the foreseeable future, he is encouraging people to continue to wear a mask. The program started after a Clergy conference call when Stitt proclaimed December 3rd a “Day of Prayer and Faster.” Reverend Diana Davies attended the call, but was frustrated when only preachers who opposed a mask mandate were able to speak. Due to this, she created a website with Christmas cards and slogans to enforce a mask mandate: “Yes, prayers are good but we need to take action” Davies declared. And Davies now has been getting support from other religious organizations across the country, putting pressure on the state to possibly enforce a mask mandate.
COVID-19 has completely taken over 2020 and made the year nothing like we ever expected. While 2020 is almost over COVID is not, yet that doesn’t mean we should fret. The Christmas season will still occur even if it’s a little bit different this year. Christmas cards are the perfect present for this holiday season, providing a safe and fun way to spread joy. COVID might still be here, but that just means the holidays might get a little more creative this year.