After Halloween, we anticipate the November holidays, such as Thanksgiving. However, every year on Nov. 1, grocery stores, retail stores, malls, etc. immediately transition from Halloween-themed decor to Christmas, and I find it to be annoying.

Nothing gets me less in the Christmas spirit than anticipating it prematurely, but stores and radio stations make it impossible to avoid. Christmas music is blasting throughout Walmart as you shop for groceries and giant Christmas trees start popping up in malls. Sometimes neighbors will put their lights and decor up in early November as if there aren’t nearly two months until Christmas Day. 

I love Christmas; it’s my favorite holiday. I love the lights, the songs and the movies. I love drinking hot cocoa and thinking of ways to give back to the people I love. However, I express my love for all things Christmas-related after Thanksgiving ends. Celebrating Christmas before Thanksgiving feels wrong because it diminishes the joy of Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a holiday to express gratitude with good food, friends and family, but all anyone sees weeks before Thanksgiving day is Christmas stuff.

Christmas even encroaches on Thanksgiving Day with Black Friday. The appeal of Black Friday is getting amazing deals on retail items, but the Black Friday catalogs for stores like Walmart, Target, and BestBuy are usually Christmas-themed. Also, retail stores open on Thanksgiving night instead of Friday, so while you’re enjoying turkey and being thankful for what you have earlier in the day, you get ready to push and trample people to get deals later that night. Those deals are usually Christmas gifts. 

Retail store decor should be fall and Thanksgiving-themed until Thanksgiving ends. Christmas songs shouldn’t be played before Thanksgiving. Black Friday should be on Friday, so Thanksgiving can have its moment. All the Christmas spirit should be reserved for Christmas time which is promptly after Thanksgiving Day ends. Christmas is such a beautiful time of year, so let’s stop rushing it and preserve the magic.