How would Christmas be celebrated in Tribeworld? In what ways would it differ from how we celebrate Christmas today? Would New Year still be celebrated in the New World of the Tribe? That is the topic of this special Christmas worldview…
THE BEGINNING – WOULD CHRISTMAS EXIST AT ALL?
By mid-December there is a frenzy of anticipated excitement around the world with Christmas around the corner. But in Tribeworld, life is very different and we wonder if Christmas would exist at all? Surely there are “more important” things to think about in the Tribe – like where your next meal is going to come from, survival on the streets, defending your home against Demon Dogs.
Wouldn’t Christmas no longer be the number one priority in the city? We feel yes. But Christmas would not disappear altogether. You can’t wipe away a two thousand year old tradition overnight. No virus is powerful enough to do that. Traditions and customs that have survived many other major episodes in human history would still survive a major virus. It just means the way they would exist would change to reflect the changed world…
WE WISH YOU A MERRY XMAS AND A TRIBAL GATHERING
Firstly, let’s look at the material side of Christmas. After all, a big part of Christmas deals with material things in today’s world. Things like shopping, buying and giving presents. We are so immersed in material things because they reflect some non-material things – we buy presents and send cards to those we love because we love them.
In Tribeworld, loving loved ones would still exist and in this sense, so would the desire surely to give something to those you love as a signal that you love them at Christmas time – and their desire to give something to you.
But remember the material world in Tribeworld is completely different. There are no shops as we know them – no money as we know it – no television adverts with things to entice people to buy – the economy and material world has literally returned in many ways to a pre-industrial order.
Trading and barter would have re-appeared instead of credit cards, you would make goods if you couldn’t find any in abandoned shops – instead of buying goods online with the click of a mouse.
So people would still give presents but these would be things they could find in abandoned and looted shops – or be things that are more personal and homemade.
The nature of gifts would change too. Without a ready supply of electricity (although batteries are everywhere) you would have no need of a computer – or a television. Your main priority may be a barbecue to cook food – or simply food itself…
CHRISTMAS FOOD
The menu at Christmas in Tribeworld would be much limited compared to today. There would not be such a range of choice of food. There would be no processed frozen turkeys to buy, no frozen peas, no potatoes to buy at the grocery shop.
You may still be able to find wrapped up food that could be eaten and not past its sell-by date – like mince pies, Christmas puddings, Christmas cake.
But you’d find it hard to cook this food.
So the big Christmas meal would not be a huge plate of turkey and buffet type meal – Christmas lunch in Tribeworld may be a tin of beans… if you’re lucky. Some tribes may trade with countryside tribes though and still procure turkeys or fresh vegetables to eat at Christmas.
DECORATIONS
Christmas in Tribeworld would be noticeable without Christmas trees. There’d be far less than today – partly because there’d be no tree cutting services to get new real trees, no trucks to deliver them to cities. People may still find the odd fir tree here and there but that’s it – there wouldn’t be millions of trees to cut down and put up at Christmas.
There may be lots of artificial trees in warehouses and shops though that Tribes could get to decorate their malls or living places with.
But no lights – uh huh. With no permanent supply of electricity, you couldn’t plug in lights at night.
You may be able to find decorations to decorate your mall or living place but would have a great deal less than in today’s world to choose from.
THE CHRISTMAS SPIRIT
Now apart from the material aspects of Christmas, another side are spiritual and religious elements. Of course, the root of Christmas is meant to be the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ (even though scholars think he was born around April).
And Christmas is also linked in with an old pagan festival from Roman times where green plants decorated houses, people consumed loads of food and gave presents.
So a key question to ask about the Christmas spirit and religious side of Christmas is this – would there actually be religion in Tribeworld at all?
Again, we feel yes to a degree. You can’t wipe out thousands of years of traditions, beliefs and customs overnight. People would still celebrate and worship God in all the major world’s religions.
So celebrating the birth of Jesus and Christmas in a religious sense would still continue. It just might change in the way it manifested. There may no longer be priests so would people still go to old churches for Christmas Eve midnight mass? Maybe. Perhaps older kids would act out the nativity and teach younger kids all about Christmases past. Maybe younger kids would do nativity scenes and plays.
And some Tribes would have their own unique versions of Christmas. Maybe the Chosen would have their own Christmas celebrating the birth of Zoot – it could be conceivable that in his twisted and warped mind, the Guardian would develop a Zoot nativity and story and Zoot songs to singŠ have yourself a Zoot Christmas?
YO HO BRO! IT’S A TRIBAL SANTA!
So what is it like at Christmas in Tribeworld? The answer is similar to today’s Christmas and also different. There’d still be a Christmas for those who would want to have one – but less and different decorations, different material presents and a different spiritual side to it.
Christmas would continue in Tribeworld.
And Santa? Well he has been around and survived world wars, plagues, the Black Death, great depressions – could he survive the Tribal virus? We feel yes – he would be rocking around the Christmas tree, jingling his jingle bells for all to hear. Santa would still be kicking and doing his Christmas thing around the world.