“Thanksgiving: The Forgotten Holiday?”

After Halloween, many people get right into the Christmas spirit. It’s like November 1st hits and suddenly, green and red glitter is EVERYWHERE. It seems as though this year, an alarming number of people are choosing to decorate in early November for the holidays. Some people have their trees up. Some just listen to Christmas music. Some rush to show off their peppermint lattes from Starbucks in their Insta stories. While there are still some who like to wait until after Thanksgiving, the question remains: have we forgotten Thanksgiving? To some, it appears that Thanksgiving doesn’t even matter. They skip right past it and don’t even mind it until the day before when they realize they need to bring out the sweatpants with room to spare. 

Have you ever heard someone say Thanksgiving is their favorite holiday? I know I haven’t. Most people I know don’t take the time and effort to acknowledge Thanksgiving. They think it’s a hassle to decorate for and could live without it the meaning behind it. Sure, they like the pie and the carbs, but they don’t take the time to remember the importance of gratitude on this day. They don’t stop to appreciate everything we have (which we know might be hard in a crazy year like 2020, but still). In my opinion, Thanksgiving is more about spending time with the people you love and care for. It’s about being thankful for the things you have, even if it’s just being thankful for toilet paper and Lysol wipes. Not a lot of people see that. People love Christmas for the gifts it brings and for the songs of joy it has, but behind the scenes, Christmas is very stressful. You have to be worried about what to buy your loved ones, where to celebrate, how to stay within your budget, etc. But for Thanksgiving, it’s easy. All that matters is that you’re with your family (biological or chosen). And as a bonus, you get to eat food. 

Christmas is an amazing holiday that I know makes my friends, family, and I happy. You also get to spend quality time with the people that mean the most to you. But still, maybe we should consider the fact that we are celebrating too early.  Thanksgiving should just be more appreciated and should have its own exciting anticipation. Now turn off Mariah Carey and start dreaming about what pies you’re going to take down at the dinner table!