Postholiday blues

Take down the Christmas tree, coil the lights, and bid distant relatives safety in their travels. The holiday season has finally come to its abrupt conclusion. Here come our groggy marches back to school, to the office or to some distant places considered home away from home.

At this point, we are already moving on. It is a change in season that happens year after year. Nothing different or strange about it. But there are those who take it hard and choke back tears as they watch malls take down their inflated Santas. I think I may be one of these people.

The feeling of loneliness when these festivities end is a reality. We are supposedly energized to return to normality after some time off our routines, but we can also possibly get attached to the merrymaking a little too much. When that happens, postholiday blues sink in. When I was younger, it pained me when Christmas trees disappeared once more from storefronts and hotel lobbies.

I am feeling the postholiday blues all over again. This time, it’s for new, adult reasons. Not only was 2018 a party I didn’t want to leave. But 2019 seems like the kind of party with off-key music, a bit of sour taste and a slightly awkward start.

Reports have it that we may have another recession this year. Global stock markets dipped into a bloodbath last Wednesday as investors worried about China, whose manufacturing sector is reportedly contracting. The trade war between the United States and China has both countries reeling, destabilizing the rest of the world.

Some experts do think 2019 wouldn’t be “that year,” but recessions are always hard to predict. What seems certain at this point is a global economic slowdown. It would be interesting to see how the new wave of political leaders will align their populist policies against what Stephanie Kelly of CNN Business Perspectives calls “a weaker economic backdrop.”

It’s also this year when 5G is expected to be introduced to the market, although its massive consumption is not expected immediately. According to Mashable, 5G is going to be a hundred times faster than 4G. With this technology, unimaginable possibilities are just around the corner.

However, 5G also seems to ignite the fears of those wary about artificial intelligence. My fear as a Filipino, though, is if we could even take full advantage of such technology, what with our insufferable internet speed in the country. Technological advancements like this could only lead to two possible scenarios: further disrupt the way we do things, or further distance us from our technologically adept neighbors.

Also, in 2019, it is expected that Generation Z will overtake millennials in terms of population. Gen Z, or those born in 2001 and after, apparently will become the new largest generational cohort. This generation was born into a world with smartphones and social media already in place, perhaps making them the first generation unaware of the kind of life that existed before these conveniences. How they will shape the world is a mystery, though it wouldn’t take long for us to find out.

Suddenly, it seems like my postholiday blues are justifiable. Never has there been more certainty about uncertainty than in the start of 2019. A looming recession and a leap in technology will be shaping an emerging generation. It seems like the perfect time to dream again of our merrymaking. Nonetheless, 92 percent of my countrymen entered this year with hope, according to a Social Weather Stations survey. Perhaps, as there is enough reason to second-guess the quality of our lives for the next several months, there is also much conviction in our ability to pull through.

I will be terribly missing the scent of peppermint, the warmth of hot chocolate, the laughable faces of nutcrackers. I hope you, too, had a most memorable holiday season. As you pack up last year’s ornaments and party favors, may the next months be filled with strength and resilience, until the most wonderful time of the year visits us again. For what it’s worth, let’s own it: 2019 will be the best.

michael.baylosis@gmail.com