Sometimes as I walk hand-in-hand through the snow, I reflect on how happy I am. In a matter of days, I completely changed my life around. I left my big city job, broke up with my ex-boyfriend and started dating a royal from a small, Christmas-obsessed country.

It’s a simple life being a small time journalist and queen. But it’s enough for me. As I look up at my literal Christmas prince, I realize that miracles really do come true. 

And then I wake up.

I realize that I’m alone in my closet-sized dorm. My arms are wrapped around my faux silk pillow, not the crown prince of Aldovia. I broke up with my beau a year ago and I have no eager suitors. For the 21st year in a row, I have failed to meet my culturally ambiguous Christmas prince. 

And I regret to admit I am no Christmas princess. 

Yet every year, myself and thousands of women will dutiful watch Christmas romances. We dare to hope that love really does come out of modestly sized TVs and into real life. This process continues until Christmas is over and we regain our rightful place as spinsters. Not everyone is born to rule a small, British-sounding nation. But I digress. 

Sure, the acting is questionable at times and the writing is sketchy at best, but the true beauty of Hallmark movies is their heart. I like to think that Christmas love stories are like Disney movies for adults. Not that adults can’t enjoy Disney movies, but adults know life isn’t a fairy tale. It’s perfect for people who don’t believe in Santa Claus or talking snowmen but still believe in everyday magic. 

The slice-of-life style of Christmas movies shows that people can find an abundant amount of happiness in everyday life. Of course, there are crazy elements like Christmas princes, time-traveling knights and questionable Santa-like figures. But at the end of movies, the leading woman will find the love of her life, the job of her dreams and inner strength. She learns what she’s worth and what she deserves, or perhaps how to get back to her roots. 

The point is that the real allure of a Christmas movie is that it’s a realistic escape from everyday lives. It’s a reflection of a season that’s full of hope. You get breaks from work and school, gifts from friends and a hope for a new future.

Even if you don’t celebrate Christmas, a lot of holidays are celebrated in December. It’s really one of the most wonderful times of the year, and it produces some of the best movies of the year.

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