I am writing this on November 19, a Friday in 2010. Yesterday I rode through the main street of town in which I live and surprised by the Christmas ornamentation that is already up. Probably surprise is not the correct word. Maybe dismay or despair might be better choices. Thanksgiving Day is about a week away and Advent does not begin until November 28. What's the rush? Why is it so important to get into the "Holiday Spirit" so soon after Halloween?
Complaining over the years has not changed anything. So complaining again this year is not likely to change anything either, other than lead me into a gloomy despair over the misuse of Christmas. Once I was asked if I was ready for Christmas and my response was that I had not observed Advent yet. When I said that the questioner was taken back and asked, "What is Advent?" Trying to explain that the Advent season prepared us for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus Christ and it is the four weeks before Christmas did not help. I suppose that my despair is not so much about the misuse of Christmas but the loss a religious culture that gives as sense of stability and slows down the pace of life.
So far I do not have a shopping list, I do not plan on buying a lot of gifts. The children of my family will not be disappointed, however. They will receive what they need and a little extra so that Christmas is memorable for them, but I am not going to add to the over stimulation of the "Holiday Season" that leads only to greed and disappointment.
Maybe old Scrooge was right after all. Bah humbug!
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