There is no such thing as an "atheist". There is a dedicated area in the brain allocated for your believes. Scientists call it the "God spot". And it's not just in humans either. When you say you're an atheist you're just denying God, or the existence of a higher power and instead choose to believe in something else. Either way, you still believe in something, and that belief alone is linked to the supernatural because you still have hope and you still expect things to go right for you in life.
The promise of eternal life is alluded to plenty of times in the Bible, but nowhere is the afterlife specifically described. The Bible was written by humans, and interpretation of the word of God, or what some thought, at the time, that the word of God was. Nevertheless, it leaves plenty of room for interpretation. My interpretation of it is that both heaven and hell are here on Earth. It is our choice to be kind to each other and make the best we can of this life because we get only one chance to do it. Believing in God doesn't mean you have to believe in the word of men.
Now, in the 21st century, we talk about the possibility of aliens, other civilizations, all the while explaining our own existence through evolution, acting like know-it-alls. The arrogance of the human species truly boggles the mind. We know very little about the universe, our planet, and ourselves. And yet, with so little information, we tend to act like we know it all. The fact is that we're nothing more than biomechanical machines with a biochemical computer for a brain. The "soul" is that magic link between mind and body, and the two can never be separated. Whoever built this place and us, made sure that we had everything we needed. We never invented anything, we just slowly discovered it. Even fuel and lubrication was provided for us, we just had to figure it out. So, that "God spot" in the brain, that was built-in as well. I doubt that we'll ever get past pragmatic observation, some of us, and some of us will naively believe in the Pearly Gates with an angel holding a harp waiting there for each and every one of us.
I think that being in the center feels good. So don't overthink it, just enjoy the Holidays for what they are without engaging in the commercial aspect of it. It's a good time to spend some time together with your loved ones. And don't worry, humanity's going in a circle. We're just smarter monkeys deluding ourselves that we're geniuses, convincing ourselves that we have it all figured out, and that it's just a matter of time before we get "there".
Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas!