Ah November, what a great time of the year. Fall is at its peak, leaves are everywhere, football season is in full swing and Thanksgiving awaits us at the end of the month. So why in the hell is everyone talking about Christmas, which is still weeks away?
Now don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas as much as the next bad Jew who celebrates both Christmas and Chanukah, but why do people willingly choose to ignore such a wonderful time? I understand that the hype for Christmas begins in September for some people – after all it is the most wonderful time of the year. But we are able to ignore the hype for the most wonderful time of the year in October, when all people talk about is Halloween. So why can’t that carry over into November?
Here is something I really don’t understand. Throughout all of the end of summer and September all you hear about is how excited everyone is for all the wonder autumn will bring them. Sweater weather, the pretty colors that the trees become and of course, pumpkin spice lattes. Many people, including myself, will tell you that fall is their favorite season for all of these reasons and more. So why are we so ready to forget about fall once Halloween ends? Do people know that fall is not just the month of October? In fact, the first week or two of October is usually just as warm and barren as September. It’s such a contradiction that everyone claims to love fall, yet in November – when fall is at its height – everyone ignores it.
Why not focus all of the holiday joy on Thanksgiving? Poor Thanksgiving is treated like all of those other lame holidays. I’m looking at you, Arbor Day. But other than the fact that Christmas is a month afterward, why else would you ignore such a great holiday? Thanksgiving is all about spending time with people you love, eating delicious foods until you just can’t anymore and watching football (preferably seeing the Cowboys lose in the process). It’s like Christmas, but warmer and with football. Just instead of getting gifts, you get food. Can you really complain about getting food?
Okay, maybe you can make the argument that there is no such thing as Thanksgiving music, but there are just as many Thanksgiving specials on television as there are Christmas specials. Go watch Joey from “Friends” get his head stuck in a turkey, or watch Marshall slap Barney on “How I Met Your Mother” and sing a beautiful song about it afterwards. If sitcoms aren’t your cup of tea, sit down and enjoy the “Peanuts” Thanksgiving special that all of you are currently ignoring and watching the Christmas special instead. If a show has a Christmas themed episode, I guarantee you they have a Thanksgiving themed one as well. Stay in season, folks.
Again, I am most certainly not hating on Christmas and all of the other holidays that are in December. The holiday season is one of my favorite times of the year, and I do admit that I enjoy Christmas more than I enjoy Thanksgiving. But I’m still taking a stand for November and Thanksgiving, who don’t get as nearly as much love as they deserve. So take down your Christmas lights, throw on that fall sweater, go get a pumpkin spice latte and listen to Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong sing “Autumn in New York” during your walk through the leaves. The holiday season will be here soon enough, folks, and by all means get excited. But don’t ignore the wonder of autumn in the process. You’re missing out on the best that the season you claim to love the most is offering.