A few weeks ago, as we returned from my son's soccer practice, I noticed someone already had their Christmas tree up, lit, and on display in their window—yet, at the time, it was still a week or more before Halloween!Now I can understand being anxious for all the goodness Christmas brings, trust me. As a child I always looked forward to Christmas in a major way, too.
The sounds, smells, and look of the season gave me so much to smile about that I could hardly contain myself long enough to put up my own tree and decorations. But, lately it feels like we're being bombarded with the sales pitch for Santa earlier and earlier and that concerns me.
(BEFORE Halloween?...Seriously?)
You see, I'm one of those people who remembers the "reason for the season", and while the commercialization of Christmas hasn't lessened that knowledge, I worry that the day will soon come where Christmas is lumped in with a "holiday" like, say, Valentines Day—which is to say, it'll be just another day upon which money can be made.
Does that sound ridiculous? Well, brace yourself for the way I considered staging my own personal protest.
While I could never get away with foregoing presents—Santa and I are on speed dial at this point—I did consider ditching the tree and everything else this year as a way of reminding my children that as much as Christmas brings joy and good tidings for them, it's about the birth of Jesus Christ first and foremost, and He didn't require an inflatable reindeer to announce His arrival.
I know, I know, it's extreme, but I've finally become bothered by those who seek to make Christmas about the dollars and sense and, by doing so, letting the true reason go unnoticed.
In the end I will likely do as I have always done—put the tree and every other decoration up on Thanksgiving night—but this year I feel an even bigger need to refocus the attention (at least to those in our home) on why we celebrate this wondrous day in the first place.
