One word: Thanksgiving. Two words: fall season. Three words: preventing holiday burnout. We’re going to talk about all three. Alright, listen up. Everyone knows that friend who starts blasting Christmas music in October. Yeah, we need to talk about that. We’re not in a rush to get to Christmas, okay?
Thanksgiving deserves its time to shine. It’s a holiday built on gratitude, not the race to get the tree up. If you’re decking the halls before the turkey’s even on the table, we’ve got a serious problem. Christmas is great, sure, but let’s slow down and give Thanksgiving the attention it deserves. It’s not just a speed bump on the way to December; it is its own holiday with its own vibe, so can we all just take a breather and enjoy it first?
Let’s get something straight: do you really want to start listening to Christmas music at the beginning of November? By the time December comes around, you’re already tired of the classics. The answer is no, nobody wants to get tired of music, but it’s human nature to get bored of listening to the same 20 songs for two months. People are putting up Christmas lights before the last cranberry sauce even hits the table. What are we, animals? You can’t just fast-forward to the end of the movie.
Honestly, Thanksgiving is a middle-child holiday. By jumping straight into Christmas preparations before Thanksgiving has even passed, we risk diminishing the significance of this important day. It’s all about being thankful. Thanksgiving should be a time to reflect on what we have, appreciate the present, and enjoy family without the distraction of the next impending holiday.
Each holiday has its own time and space. The shift from Thanksgiving to Christmas represents a natural transition in the year. Christmas is a major celebration, and it should be given its own time to shine. Starting Christmas preparations before Thanksgiving skews this balance, making the months blend together in a commercial frenzy. Thanksgiving’s the prelude. It’s the calm before the storm, where we reflect and appreciate what we’ve got—and you want to skip it for some half-baked “Black Friday” deals? That’s not how this works.
Growing up in Anchorage, Alaska, winter was a constant in my life. We had the kind of winter that buried you under feet of snow, and it was horrible, so my family usually stayed indoors. When the fall season came, it was all indoor decorations. Halloween had its green and orange color schemes; Thanksgiving had its brown and orange color scheme; and finally, Christmas had the iconic red and green colors. Each holiday had its own flavor and uniqueness. If the focus is always on Christmas in early November, it cheapens the experience of both holidays.
Getting Christmas a month or two early is also a bit selfish. “If I waited to start with Christmas decor until Dec. 1, I would only get one lousy month of Christmas. For me, Christmas begins on November 1.” To me, that is a big red flag. Imagine that for any other holiday. “If I start celebrating Easter on April 1, I only get one lousy month of Easter, so I start on the 1st of March.” It sounds like you want to keep the feeling of a holiday longer than it should. There’s no shame in wanting a moment in time to last longer. But eventually, we do have to let go. I understand it is harder for some, and we must help our brothers and sisters to keep on the good fight because life is precious, and we must enjoy everything we can.
So, if you want to deck the halls, light the Christmas tree, and put on your ugly sweater, fine. But not until after the turkey’s carved. Not until we’ve taken a breath, said thanks, and earned the right to kick off Christmas.
