By MEGHAN RUMMEL & JUSTIN REESE – Year after year, it seems as though Christmas gains a lead over Thanksgiving in celebration and decoration. While some may enjoy preparing for and embracing the “Christmas Spirit” through early November, some have taken a strong stance against it in the defense of Thanksgiving.
JUSTIN:
In preparation, people have displayed their staple decorations like Christmas trees, lights, and flashing decorations, and it’s still November. Freshman Kyle Christian states that “I have already put up my Christmas tree and it brings me an early start to Christmas joy!”
Sophomore Avery Olenhcick supported the early decorating by stating, “Decorations are in full effect in my house including three Christmas trees, lights strung across the roof, and several other flashy displays. It gives the house a homier and warmer feeling that I’m taking full advantage of.”
I personally welcome the extension of Christmas into November. In fact, my Christmas decorations this year went up in early November. Not only do I enjoy the decorations, but also events such as the “It’s a Wonderful Life Parade” which took place on November 22 and featured the showcasing of town decorations, and the IRMC Park tree lighting.
While it might seem early to some, the event brings the town together and gets the community excited for the coming month and it’s festivities. Junior Anakin Leydic attended the yearly event and stated that it “gave me a warm feeling seeing everyone come together to celebrate a holiday and share a feeling of holiday spirit.”
MEGHAN:
While some think it’s never too early to get into the holiday spirit, others disagree. Sophomore Sam Overman expressed that, “Christmas has become a bit overrated because stores and people start decorating a month early and some even do it just to brag. People decorate for Christmas a month early, but no one talks about Thanksgiving until the week of.”
A handful of students even think Thanksgiving is lacking in well deserved attention, Freshman Emmy Davis said, “Thanksgiving is underrated because a lot of people just go straight to Christmas when October ends.” Sophomore Antonia Bizzaro added, “Thanksgiving is underrated because people don’t appreciate giving thanks as much as they should.”
Some even claim that the true meaning of Christmas has become convoluted due to the early decorating and alleged “over-glorification of Christmas.” Davis expressed that, “it’s Jesus’s birthday and we need to celebrate that part more, maybe we should focus more on the religious part of Christmas instead of the commercialized version.”
I don’t think that people should start decorating for Christmas a month in advance because it takes away from another major holiday, which is Thanksgiving. When seeing all the decorations, lights, trees, and snow you can get distracted from the fact that it is still November, and Christmas isn’t until the end of December. If Christmas was at the beginning of December, it would make sense to decorate in November, but since it’s not until the very end of the month, I don’t think people should decorate this early.
Even though students disagree on the semantics of decorating and celebration, Thanksgiving and Christmas have one major thing in common, and that is gathering with friends and family. Bizzaro stated that, “I enjoy Thanksgiving because the family I don’t get to see much usually gather with us.” Davis says, “On Christmas, I like to open presents and visit with family.”
Although they’re both major holidays, it seems inevitable that one will overshadow the other, and while students may have opposing views, one thing is for sure, students across IHS are getting into the holiday spirit.
[Photo by Justin Reese]
Photo Caption: “Community members celebrate the annual tree lighting ceremony in IRMC Park.”
Meghan is a freshman and this is her first year on the High Arrow staff. She is excited to write useful and truthful articles.
Justin Reese is a junior and is returning to journalism for his second year of reporting. Justin loves writing articles that will inform and entertain his peers.
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