Column: Three Things People Over 40 Need to Know About the Holiday Season
By Antionette Kerr
At some point this holiday season, someone under 25 is going to mention K-Pop Demon Hunters or the new release of Stanger Things— and if you’re over 40, you’ll be sitting there trying to decide if it’s a band, a movie, a video game, or a new after-school club. The answer?
You don’t have to understand it, but nodding like you do will earn you serious points and prevent you from asking the question that ages every parent: “So… what exactly is a demon hunter and why are they dancing?”
Here are a few more words of advice:
1. TikTok Challenges Are Fun… Until They’re Not
If you’re over 40 and still trying to figure out what a TikTok challenge is, here’s the cheat code: it’s a short viral trend where everybody copies the same dance, joke, recipe, or stunt.
My family did a dance challenge this year to Stephanie Mills “Love like this before” — harmless, hilarious, and full of “wait, don’t post that angle!” energy.
That’s the fun side.
But for every cute family dance video, there’s another challenge online involving running, jumping, choking, or “we saw this on the internet so let’s try it!”
Before all the kids and teens pile up in Davidson County living rooms over break, it’s smart to know what’s trending so folks can keep the fun without the ER visit.
2. Your Body Will Snitch on You… Even If You Don’t Want It To
After 40, your back, knees, and digestive system start filing complaints like they work HR. Holidays come with lifting decorations, long drives, and couches that were absolutely not designed for grown hips.
Stretch, hydrate, walk it out — because over-40 joy hits different when you’re not recovering for three days.
3. You’re Allowed to Remix Holiday Traditions
This year, nobody in my family wanted a turkey. Not one person. Turkey suddenly felt so 1980s — like shoulder pads, VHS tapes, and Jell-O molds.
I don’t even eat turkey, but I still went searching for options and ended up going full “Holiday Remix Edition”… and landed on surf and turf.
Let me tell you, shrimp and steak hit way better than a dry bird you have to babysit for five hours.
The older you get, the more you realize you don’t have to keep doing things just because “that’s what we’ve always done.”
In Davidson County, we’re not short on traditions — but we’re also not scared to make new ones, especially the delicious ones.
Happy Holidays!
