A growing trend observed in recent times is ostentatious family celebrations, such as birthdays and weddings. In the essay below, I will set out the importance of these family occasions, and explain why I firmly believe that the current generation is spending excessively on these parties.
Key occasions such as birthdays and weddings are cause for celebration as they are happy events that bring the family closer. Meeting family members during such occasions, especially if they are regular such as birthday parties, is certain to build familial ties and bonds. In addition, certain family celebrations such as those to honour a recent graduate may also spur and inspire other family members to reach similar heights of achievement.
However, in recent times, lavish amounts of money are being spent during these celebrations. In my mind, the extravagance is not warranted, as the sheer amount of money spent detracts from the key reason of having the celebration, which is to enjoy the company of family members, and to share in the joy of the occasion. A typical wedding dinner in my country, Malaysia, is now held in luxurious hotels, and the cost of such dinners goes into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, and frequently lands the newly-weds into debt. Guests at the wedding also feel uncomfortable attending such lavish dinners, as they feel obliged to contribute large sums to attend. Some young couples even make the drastic decision to postpone their marriage due to peer pressure to spend similar amounts. Indeed, a family can still enjoy a family celebration for reasonable amounts of money by organising parties such as pot-luck dinners, where all those present will bring a dish to be shared, thereby lessening the burden on the celebrant.
Having considered the points above, I believe that family celebrations allow relatives to cherish the important moments in each other’s lives. I do agree that nowadays people spend too much on these occasions. I am firmly in favour of celebrating family occasions only in a modest manner. This would ensure these celebrations would not pose a burden to all present, and would keep the focus on the joyous occasion.
A growing trend observed in recent times is ostentatious
family
celebrations
, such as birthdays and
weddings
. In the essay below, I will set out the importance of these
family
occasions
, and
explain
why I
firmly
believe that the
current
generation is spending
excessively
on these parties.
Key
occasions
such as birthdays and
weddings
are cause for
celebration
as they are happy
events
that bring the
family
closer. Meeting
family
members during such
occasions
,
especially
if they are regular such as birthday parties, is certain to build familial ties and bonds.
In addition
, certain
family
celebrations
such as those to
honour
a recent graduate may
also
spur and inspire other
family
members to reach similar heights of achievement.
However
, in recent times, lavish
amounts
of money are
being spent
during these
celebrations
. In my mind, the extravagance is not warranted, as the sheer
amount
of money spent detracts from the key reason of having the
celebration
, which is to enjoy the
company
of
family
members, and to share in the joy of the
occasion
. A typical
wedding
dinner
in my country, Malaysia, is
now
held in luxurious hotels, and the cost of such
dinners
goes into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, and
frequently
lands the
newly
-weds into debt. Guests at the
wedding
also
feel uncomfortable attending such lavish
dinners
, as they feel obliged to contribute large sums to attend.
Some
young couples even
make
the drastic decision to postpone their marriage due to peer pressure to spend similar
amounts
.
Indeed
, a
family
can
still
enjoy a
family
celebration
for reasonable
amounts
of money by
organising
parties such as pot-luck
dinners
, where all those present will bring a dish to
be shared
, thereby lessening the burden on the celebrant.
Having considered the points above, I believe that
family
celebrations
allow
relatives to cherish the
important
moments in each other’s
lives
. I do
agree
that nowadays
people
spend too much on these
occasions
. I am
firmly
in
favour
of celebrating
family
occasions
only
in a modest manner
. This would ensure these
celebrations
would not pose a burden to all present, and would
keep
the focus on the joyous
occasion
.