A Holiday Tradition: Complaining About Your Gifts on Social Media

Embed from Getty Images

Holidays can be great for many reasons: family time, full stomachs, movie marathons. So. Many. Movies. With this weekend marking both Christmas and the beginning of Hanukkah, a sense of cheer has filled the air. However, while joyous for many, the holidays can also be an extremely tough time for those who do not get to experience these traditions, for one reason or another. And social media is only making it harder.

Whether religious or not, this time of year has a way of reminding us of all we have to be thankful for. Some aren’t so lucky. This is why it’s discouraging to see the outbursts by some on social media in regards to something as materialistic as an undesirable gift. One Twitter user takes this especially seriously.

Using social media to expose entitlement

Zach Williamson, the creator behind Wordstigram and the satirical account Things4WhitePpl, insists on pointing this sentiment out online. Each Christmas, he takes to his Twitter account — which boasts more than 93,000 followers — to retweet users who have opted to share their less-than-thrilled opinions on the holiday gifts they’ve received.

Ah, yes, an age old tradition. Like singing the National Anthem before sporting events or eating snacks every night before bed. Zach doesn’t consider himself a comedian, but does this each year to show “how ungrateful” some people can be.

He told me, “Some of these teens are actually that mad that their parents bought them a PS4 instead of an Xbox One — or the wrong iPhone color. I can't imagine posting something like that on the internet either, and no way would that would fly with me if I saw my kid post it.”

While his followers get a kick out of his annual holiday activity, it’s clear that, to Zach, there is a very real lesson about being grateful to be learned here. Check out some of the gems he found below.

On the first day of...

First off, cheez-its are a delicious snack.

Zach’s point isn’t specific to these tweets, though. It’s about the larger picture as 2016 comes to a close (thank god). The holidays have a way of putting everything in perspective, and we’ve all been guilty at some point of — maybe unfairly — wanting more, regardless of age. I know I sure have.

These social posts, (and others similar) whether aimed to be humorous or not, give us the gentle reminder to be thankful for what we have, and to appreciate what others do for us. Always. Because for many, things could be worse.

But come on now...

Happy holidays!