COMMENTARY: It’s the holidays, and we need to chill

Holiday songwriters love to create whimsical images of the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season.

The lyrics describe a carefree joy, drawing a pictured of shoppers, bakers and Pinterest-worthy wreath makers happily preparing for the big day.

Eye roll. As a member of the real world, I beg to differ.

Our culture of rush, attention deficit and mile long to-do lists — particularly for parents in December — keeps us in overdrive.

It also possibly led to an individual requiring an ambulance this week outside an elementary school in the Rio Grande Valley.

I was a witness to the result: The person, on the pavement, was surrounded protectively by educators and parents in the parking lot. Reportedly, the adult was struck by a vehicle while crossing through during school drop-off, about 7:40 a.m.

I don’t know the details, the perpetrator or victim, how it happened or who is to blame. That’s not what this column is about.

Frankly, we need to chill.

It could have easily been one of our very precious children. Young people also likely saw the incident, as it was a topic of discussion among students, my son told me that night.

A official notice was sent home with students. “The safety of our school community is our top priority, and we want to ensure that everyone can arrive and depart from our school grounds without any risks or incidents,” it read, adding a reminder to parents about using the designated drop-off lanes.

Admittedly, throughout my few years as a parent to a school-age child, my frustrations in life have included the pick-up line. It can be a chaotic experience, and the priority of safety often means a longer wait.

But where are we really going that we can’t spare a few minutes for the welfare of other people?

We’re all busy, something I like to call a full-time life — but we have near instant gratification at our fingertips and more technological advancements than any generation before us. We have curbside groceries, Instant Pots and text messaging.

In addition to being adults functioning in high speed, there’s a threat we’re raising a generation that resists practicing patience.

A column by Nicholas G. Carr published by nonprofit Edge.org examined “The Patience Deficit,” the effect of the internet and mass information. “Impatience is a contagion spread from gadget to gadget,” Carr wrote.

We need to chill, also, for the young people we’re raising.

I received a loud and clear hint from my child during a recent trip to my hometown.

I grew up in the 1990s in a three-stoplight town in northwest Ohio. If one hits all green lights, it probably takes four minutes to get from one end of Main Street to the other. At the holidays, the church at the center of town sets up a beautifully lit display which includes handpainted wooden Christmas scenes.

Back in those days, we drove around for entertainment. Families piled in the car to look at Christmas lights, and they’d come by the dozens, cruising by at 2 MPH to take in the view and blocking the route. I’d get so frustrated by the sightseers.

In November, I returned home during the lighting ceremony, proud to introduce the tradition to my 9-year-old. It was quite a bit colder there than we’re used to, so I offered to drive around it slowly for him. Karmically, he replied, “No, thanks.”