Alright, here is blog three of the Christmas themed blogs, focusing on how the colourblind experience Christmas and all its little traditions. I have already released two blogs about the Christmas tree and Christmas lights and decoration, so please give those a read too. Don’t worry, I’ll still be here when you get back. Today’s focus is going to be on the big man himself, the one that makes everything happen: Father Christmas (or Santa). So, let's get into it.
Father Christmas and his weird wardrobe
We all know Father Christmas is the fat guy who lives in the North Pole, gives kids toys on Christmas and most importantly wears red. Or does he? You see for most colourblind people out there the colour scheme of Christmas confuses them because to us, Father Christmas is wearing brown. Not only that, his sleigh is brown, and his little elves are also wearing brown. Rudolph the red nosed reindeer? I think not, try Rudolph the brown nosed reindeer.
Try and find a little colourblind child and ask them what they think about Father Christmas and there is a good chance they’re going to say “what's with the brown?” He even makes his elves wear it! I understand the concept of a workplace uniform, but this takes it to a whole new level. I understand that you should try and avoid getting on Father Christmas' bad side - the whole naughty and nice thing, but maybe one year he could mix it up and wear yellow or blue. I know all the protanopes (people with red/green colourblindness) will appreciate it.
Christmas traditions around the world
You may think that different places and cultures that have different Christmas celebrations, make their Father Christmas wear different things, but no. It's always red. Now I am sure there is going to be someone out there saying that when they were a kid, their uncle was supposed to dress up as Santa, but missed the memo and came in wearing a blue Hawaiian shirt and from then it has been a family tradition to wear a Hawaiian shirt, but I’m only going to count the cultures and places I know of.
In the Netherlands, Father Christmas, or Sinterklaas as he is known, arrives in the country on the 5th of December on a steam boat from Spain and throws candy at you. He also rides around on a white horse and gives naughty kids a bundle of sticks. You want to know the common denominator? He still wears red! Everywhere you go Father Christmas wears red, and on behalf of all the colourblind people: Wearing a brown coat is a fashion crime. I would write to Sinterklaas to change his outfit, but recently many people have been complaining about other things, so I’ll wait for that to blow over. Can we also appreciate that in South Africa, Father Christmas still wears a big winter coat, even though it is the height of Summer. That's some dedication right there.
Alright that's Christmas blog number three. One more sleep! Expect the final blog tomorrow! I hope the catch the bif fella red-handed this evening. I'll be sure to wear my colour corrective glasses to get the full Santa experience. I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas Eve.
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