We Need a Little Christmas, Right This Very Minute

Halloween is over, and, well, you guessed it...I have Christmas on the brain.

In a time not so long ago, I would cringe when I saw the Christmas decorations coming out in the stores on the very day that Halloween candy was put on sale. I would shake my head at how commercialized Christmas had become, at how desperate retailers were to squeeze all of the money possible out of unsuspecting consumers under the clever guise of promoting Christmas Cheer.

Fast forward a few short years, and you will find me unabashedly proclaiming, "Bring it on!" My new official position is that I love Christmas a little too much to be disappointed that the season has gotten longer and longer (and longer) over the years. I love to walk into a store and see Christmas trees, fancy stockings, shiny ornaments, cute Christmas cards, and dangerous snow globes. I love to smell the cinnamon pine cones at the entrance of the grocery store, hear the tinny sound of Christmas carols being piped over the loudspeaker, and think about my Christmas list a little too early (because a girl can dream, right?) I say, if the Christmas season wants to start the day after Halloween, then that's fine with me. Hey, the sooner the better.

I'm not saying that I want to rush into Christmas, either, though. I truly think that most of the excitement associated with this splendid holiday is the anticipation that goes along with it, the preparation and planning and wishful thinking. I just get to savor the season a little longer now that it starts as soon as the costumes get put away. I'll still enjoy Thanksgiving, (and all the rolls and pies and mashed potatoes and togetherness that that implies) but I will admit that the thing I'm usually most grateful for on that special day is that we get to put up the tree and start listening to Christmas music the next day.

I recognize that Christmas is still outrageously over-commercialized, but that doesn't mean that I won't take advantage of the bright lights and glittery store displays to get me into the spirit of things...nor does it mean that I echo the sentiments of what society tends to think Christmas should be. I will always value and appreciate and cherish what Christmas is really about. I will relish its true meaning of Christ and service and love, and I will share that message with my eager children. It just so happens that I will likely be doing that while sipping a delicious cup of hot cocoa and staring at a sparkly Christmas tree.

So, with Dr. Seuss, I proclaim, "Welcome, Christmas, bring your cheer. Cheer to all Whos far and near. Christmas Day is in our grasp so long as we have hands to clasp. Christmas Day will always be just as long as we have we. Welcome Christmas while we stand, heart to heart and hand in hand."

Let's haul out the holly, folks. It's almost time.