The tree's are almost done doing their fall duty of creating a colorful blanket for the ground, the thermometers are getting low, and the ticking of gas stoves means a nice chocolaty treat. With Thanksgiving getting closer and closer by the minute people are bracing themselves for harsh impact of Wisconsin's unforgiving winters.
Just yesterday my mom asked me if I would be home tomorrow to help with some of the family's traditional inside Christmas decorations. I asked her "don't you think its a little soon to be putting stuff up already"? all she had to say was "its not everything"......that doesn't mean much in our house. If there is a surface area large enough for garland to be taped, draped, or stapled; its going to happen. Why my mother wanted to put up the large 5 foot by 3 foot "Christmas village" up before thanksgiving is beyond me. her defense was "if I put this up before Thanksgiving I'll have a head start on Christmas" when exactly is she going to stop and enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday if she is already preparing herself for Christmas before the turkey has even been cut?
After making the mistake once my father never put the Christmas lights up after Thanksgiving. After watching that poor man struggle attaching the lights to the house in the middle of a snow storm, I cant blame him for doing it over a month in advance; I learned a lesson just watching him remove the miniature icicles from his beard.
Thanksgiving was never given a true fighting chance. "Black Friday" alone casts a large shadow on Thanksgiving. Some people are outside waiting days in advance and miss their thanksgiving just to get the latest gadgets and gizmos, I know my mom is hunting online through all the insightful websites while she stuffing the holiday bird.
To me personally I really never had any form of "Thanksgiving spirit" because everyone around me was so concentrated on making Christmas memorable before Thanksgiving even happened! Maybe we should all slow down and enjoy each holiday as they come, so stop trying to untangle your Christmas lights, stop setting up your nativity scenes, and yes for you Christmas extremists like my mother stop setting up your to scale Christmas villages before thanksgiving even roles around.