On my way home one day, I passed Dunkin.’. There wasn’t anything particularly special about this Dunkin,’ except a three-foot-tall Christmas tree in the window that caught my eye. It was mid-October. Stores and restaurants putting up Christmas decorations around Halloween is like wearing a parka in the summer. It’s out of place. However, that’s not all it does. It takes away from the time dedicated to celebrate Halloween, and later on, Thanksgiving.
Each holiday is supposed to get it’s due time. That way, we can fully enjoy the holidays each month has to offer. Now, that’s not to say that I can’t understand seeing Christmas decorations going up in November. Thanksgiving is a pretty boring holiday, and because of that, it gets dunked on by the powerhouse that is Christmas. Don’t get me wrong, Thanksgiving has its uniqueness, but it does not match the Christmas spirit. You know what I’m talking about: “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas,” that Christmas magic. No one ever sang about turkey and gravy, although maybe they should have.
Now, let’s say you get all jazzed for Christmas and go all out in November — the music, the garland, the sweaters that make living in South Florida worse, the cookies, the movies, the Douglas Fir air fresheners. All of it. By the time December rolls around, you will be exhausted of it all. Trust me, I’ve done it. Christmas day will come and you will be glad when it goes back into its year-long slumber.
Besides, why skip Halloween? The decorations are truly unique and it gives people an excuse to dress up in costumes. For one day, that’s not considered weird. It’s also a great opportunity to meet your neighbors, and what makes for a better first impression than them handing you candy? If you’re too old for that, then you get to sit at home and witness an endless parade of costumes float by your doorstep all night. Even if you don’t want to do that, you can grab a nice cold mug of apple cider and sit down to your favorite horror movie. There’s a lot to do and drowning October in Christmas is just as unfair as the Christmas colonization of November.
It seems every year the Christmas decorations get whipped out in retail stores across the country earlier. While this might be great for business to get the ball rolling for the major Christmas cash flow, it isn’t for the rest of us who would prefer a balance in our holidays. Like eating pancakes for dinner, too much of a good thing is a bad thing. So, put the garland back in the cardboard box — it can wait another month.
