No one is more appalled when stores start putting Christmas goods on the shelves in August than my dear dad. Mine is a family that likes things to be in their proper order, and for my dad especially, that means NO signs whatsoever of Christmas until Thanksgiving. And because Thanksgiving has always been the start of the Christmas season I revel in so much, Thanksgiving has long been far and away my favorite day of the year.
Growing up, the morning was special in itself as my brother and I fought over whether to turn the TV to football or the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade. (Sadly, my brother does not appreciate those snippets of Broadway performances the same way I do. Okay, fine. He doesn't appreciate them at all.) I can't help it; there just simply seems to be an atmosphere of happiness and hope for the season to come on Thanksgiving morning that captivates me. Then of course there's the big meal itself to look forward to, which is even easier to look forward to when one has a chef at home as talented and dedicated as my mom. But my favorite part of the day was always when the meal came to an end and my dad would finally allow me to dig out the Christmas decorations and blare the Christmas CDs (usually kicked off with Miss Mariah Carey). I always had the house almost entirely decorated by the end of the day--with some help, of course, from the rest of the family.
For the most part, I still hold off on all things Christmas until Thanksgiving. But something set me off this morning, and you will never guess what it was. Well, I never would have guessed it anyway. Tony Bennet sang "I'll Be Home for Christmas" on the Today Show. That opened the flood gates. When I was in sixth grade, I saw Tony Bennett's Christmas show in Branson with my church choir, and, I'm not gonna lie. It was pretty magical.
So the Christmas spirit started creeping in on me before Thanksgiving this year, and I've decided I'm okay with it. I've been pretty bored (and boring!) the last couple weeks, and this change is refreshing. And besides that, Thanksgiving is pretty late this year. It's not even a full month before Christmas!! So I'm declaring this the week of Thanksgiving. I'm listening to Christmas music as I write this, thanking God for His son, and I might just start decorating at any moment. It is my own home, after all, and several states away from my parents.
Just don't tell my dad, okay?
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