‘Tis the wrong holiday …

I have come to accept Halloween candy being sold in August and the shopping mall being decorated for Christmas in October, but I just can't accept people lighting up their houses on the first of November! A house down the street from mine had their Christmas lights glowing this week. I was so surprised, I nearly crashed my car as I drove by. Of course my 5 year old said, "Mommy we need to put up our lights too!" This is the problem with people decorating 8 weeks before Christmas, the rest of us think we are behind. Can't we have a few weeks between Halloween and Christmas to celebrate Thanksgiving? I think the fact that the Christmas season now seems to start the day after Halloween, with us skipping right over Thanksgiving, is such a sad thing. It is rather telling though isn't it? Our kids go right from Halloween where perfect strangers dole out candy by the fistful to writing lists of all the new toys they want for Christmas. What happened to Thanksgiving? You know where we take time and are THANKFUL. We need thanksgiving. Our kids need it. Our country needs it. We live in a place and time of so much wealth and comfort and freedom. We need every one of the 22 days that fall between Halloween and Thanksgiving this year to celebrate giving thanks. After the turkey is gone and the pies have been eaten, then we can head outside and string up enough lights to make Clark Griswald jealous. Until then - wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving.