Thursday, November 3, 2011

What November Is All About

Last year, I wrote a post about Thanksgiving.  That it comes before Christmas.  And that we celebrate Thanksgiving before we start celebrating Christmas.

This year, I went and read Suldog's post on the theme (he helped me find my voice on the subject last year) and found something very moving in what he said.  He wrote about part of what inspired him- Mr. Rogers.  He was watching an episode and they went to visit a musician and the musician talked about the music being about the notes but also about the silences. Suldog quoted Mr. Rogers as say thing, "The silences are just as important as the loud parts." 

Retailers are LOUD.  They are loud with their shelving and displays, they are loud with their advertisements and mailings.  They need to grab and hold your attention in order to get your almighty dollar into their pockets.  I get that.  It's commerce, it's consumerism, it's what our country runs on these days.

But the silences that come before or after a LOUD hold so much power.  I can hear memories in my brain of being in a cacophony of noise and laughter and clanging and then stepping outside into the night and into silence and feeling it embrace me.  Which made the joy of the laughter behind me that much more joyous, more special, like the silence tied it up and sealed it into a special place.

I wish retailers would let us have some silence.  I wish Christmas fans would let Christmas come after some silence.

I celebrate Thanksgiving.  It is one of my favorite holidays- possibly my very favorite.  It doesn't always go the way I envision, there are almost always stresses of some sort.  But a holiday that is all about family and food and gratitude?  Right up my alley.

I might be looking ahead to December and planning out some weekends.  I might be starting to think about what to get as gifts (who am I kidding- that doesn't suit my last minute style in the slightest).  I might thinking about hanging some Christmas lights before December in order to take advantage of the good weather- might.  Won't turn them on until after Turkey Day, though.

I'm adding a widget of some sort to my sidebar so I can share my 30 Days of Gratitude.  I'm Pinning all kinds of recipes and Turkey Day crafts on Pinterest. Follow Me on Pinterest   I'm staying focused on Thanksgiving and the history behind it and the festivity of it all.

Let's keep Thanksgiving where it belongs- before Christmas.



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7 comments:

Nej said...

Monday night stores were taking Halloween down and putting Christmas up. Argh!!!!!!!!!! :-)

Alison said...

Lol, that is one pissed-off turkey! I know how he feels...I went to get candy Sunday night for Halloween, and had to go past the red-white-n-green section first.

I'll hold off on my "where's the Christ in a WalMart rampage?" spiel 'til next month, though. ;)

Mellodee said...

I just love the cartoon, Liz! It is perfect! May I copy it for my blog (with a link to you, of course.)

Great post!

Mel

Rebecca said...

Yes, silence is golden.

Suldog said...

Thank you so much for joining in! When I get around to posting about TCF again, next week, you'll be linked!

Katherine said...

This year, I have to work on Thanksgiving, so there won't be much celebrating.

We find ourselves preparing for Christmas earlier and earlier, mostly because our shopping list grows and the gifts seem to have to travel further and further every year. But I never put up a single decoration until after Thanksgiving.

Anonymous said...

I didn't boycott Target when they didn't let the Salvation Army ring their bells but opening at Midnight, on Thanksgiving might just make me think hard about it!