Spending time with others during the holidays is fun. Celebrating the season is fun. But dedicating multiple months to one day is a bit much.
Every year, decorations for holidays like the Fourth of July, Halloween or Valentine’s Day seem to come out earlier and earlier. I just think we need to slow down and focus on the present. Like most people, I love the spooky season, but that begins on Oct. 1, not the middle of September. I love Christmas too, but we do not need to be celebrating it in the middle of October, two months before the actual day.
The reason these feelings are stronger for me this year is because of work. I work at a grocery store, so I spend an abnormal amount of time looking at what is on the shelves. I remember on Oct. 13 I was tidying up the Halloween candy. The very next day, I was doing the same thing, only this time, most of the candy was Christmas themed. There is no reason Christmas candy needed to be out two weeks before Halloween. Not only is that crazy, but it is also wasteful, because no one actually bought all that candy.
It feels like the meaning of holidays is slowly being replaced by marketing. Stores push decorations and themed products earlier each year to get people to buy more, not because they want anyone celebrating that early. It takes away from the excitement of each season and makes it feel like one big, exhausting mega holiday.
People are just as guilty. I love Christmas music and movies as much as the next person, but starting your playlist the day after Halloween is ridiculous. Part of what makes the season special is anticipation. Rushing into it kills the magic. Hearing “All I Want for Christmas Is You” before Thanksgiving just feels wrong.
In my opinion, Christmas cheer should begin the day after Thanksgiving and end Jan. 6. That gives everyone plenty of time to decorate, celebrate and enjoy the season without stretching it too thin. If we learned to appreciate each holiday as it comes, maybe each one would feel more meaningful and a lot less exhausting.
