Halloween is over and as the calendar is now in November, people all over social media are bragging about putting up their Christmas trees already. There was a Christmas commercial for a cell phone out before Halloween.
Hell, my local Lowe’s had their Christmas stuff out before October 1st.
I saw a few TikTok videos that went something like “Thanksgiviiiing? I’ll shut the tree off for one day, but as soon as the pumpkin pie is gone, that bitch is lighting back up!”
I know that to worship at the altar of money requires an offering of pushing Christmas well before Halloween, but I think that is too much.
Don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas just as much as the next Yuletide fan (I keep Christmas going until January 4, when it actually ends) but not at the expense of Turkey Day.
Granted, I have a closer connection to it than most, with my birthday around it, and a familial connection to the Mayflower, but after thinking on it I believe it comes down to something else that is very prevalent today, and it can be summed up, of course, in one of my favorite films.
In the middle of the greatest sequel ever made, Luke Skywalker lands on Dagobah and finds Yoda. As he’s trying to justify himself for Jedi training, Yoda lays this piece of wisdom down: “This one a long time have I watched. All his life has he looked away, to the future, to the horizon. Never his mind on where he was, hmm? What he was doing.”
To me, that perfectly encapsulates the holidays and, to a different extent, what our society is. Looking ahead to the next big thing: the next car, next phone, next house.
As I mature (in years, at least), I find myself being more in the moment than I have in the past. A lot of that stems from my partner, who makes me want to savor those moments as they happen, as well as my children, who are getting older and the moments I have on a regular basis will be fewer as a result.
In the past, I’d spend times worrying about future or past events instead of enjoying the occasion I was in. And looking back, I am bummed I wasn’t fully present.
So while the holidays are magical and should be celebrated to the fullest – to the end of the holiday, not in the middle of it – we shouldn’t look past Thanksgiving. It’s a time for family (birth or chosen), food, fun and celebrating our blessings. Why overlook that? Why not enjoy every extra moment you have with your loved ones?
Not to mention football, if that’s your thing.
Life goes by so fast, and it goes faster if one constantly looks ahead, never on his mind on where one is. Not only does it hinder your ability to be a Jedi Knight, but you miss out on good times in life.
Speaking of holidays and gifts, while I celebrate my birthday this month, I want to give you a gift! For the rest of this month, my books are only $11.26. You can get them here!