Too much of a good thing can become a bad thing. Christmas displays are stores’ ways of getting your money; they get people into the holiday spirit. People are more inclined to purchase unnecessary items when the trees and lights are set up. They are money draws for retail.

At home, I do not set up for Christmas until Black Friday because setting up early overrides the joy of Thanksgiving. This holiday is supposed to be about togetherness and giving thanks to those we love, but if green and red are everywhere, the feeling that turkeys and pumpkins give are diminished. I don’t think setting up Christmas trees early is necessarily a bad thing, but it takes the excitement away from Thanksgiving because we’ve been seeing Christmas lights for a month prior.

I understand the marketing schemes behind setting up Christmas before Thanksgiving, but hearing Michael Bublé and Mariah Carey before Thanksgiving doesn’t make sense. Christmas music is extremely joyful and puts smiles on people’s faces, but that is for December, when Hallmark plays cheesy boy-gets-the-girl movies and everything works out.

Thanksgiving is a holiday that shouldn’t be overshadowed by eager people wanting to celebrate Christmas; it should be treated with the same respect as other holidays are. Thanksgiving is about giving thanks and spreading kindness to those who you care about. People travel from all over to see relatives and spend quality time together. The joy behind this shouldn’t be overridden by Christmas eagerness.

By the time it’s Christmas or near it, people get so burnt out. Listening to Christmas music for two months straight can be draining. If people stuck to the order of the holidays, there wouldn’t be any argument. Celebrate holidays in the order they come. A month of Christmas music is enough. We don’t start Valentine’s decor before New Years, so why would we start Christmas before Thanksgiving? It just isn’t rational.