There are some people who want to throw their arms round you simply because it is Christmas there are other people who want to strangle you simply because it is Christmas.

Lynd’s quip points to the emotional coercion that can accompany holidays. Christmas, in particular, is culturally scripted as a season of warmth, reconciliation, and enforced conviviality; that script can produce opposite reactions. Some people respond with exaggerated affection—embracing others because the calendar tells them to—while others feel intensified irritation, resentment, or claustrophobia, especially under social obligations and family pressures. The line’s humor comes from its blunt symmetry (“throw their arms round you” versus “strangle you”), suggesting that the same seasonal stimulus can amplify both tenderness and hostility. It also implies skepticism about sentimentality: holiday feeling may be less authentic emotion than a ritual performance that can curdle into aggression.