Let me begin with this: I absolutely love Christmas. It’s my absolute favorite holiday of the entire year. I love it because it’s a day where my family gets together to make – and eat – lots of food, we get to watch movies and sing all night long until we’re allowed to open presents at midnight. What I like almost just as much is the anticipation of it, the countdown starting on Dec. 1. However, I have noticed that as each year goes by, retailers tend to push back the countdown to Christmas more and more to the point where this year, I noticed that some had launched their fall and winter/holiday items at the same time.

This leaves me wondering: what happened to actually celebrating the entire season of fall?

Why are we almost forgetting that Halloween and Thanksgiving are in the mix between back-to-school and Christmas?

And most importantly, in my opinion, why did Starbucks launch their holiday drinks right after they launched the most important drink of the entire year, the Pumpkin Spice Latte? They never let it, as well as the Salted Caramel Mocha, breathe for an entire month when they began to advertise the Peppermint and White Chocolate Mochas?

The near-forgotten holidays of Halloween and especially Thanksgiving tend to be pushed aside in order to make room for as much holiday advertising for Christmas, as early as the beginning of October. For example, Bath and Body Works launched their fall and winter candles, soaps, and body care products at the same time. In the long run, retailers know that this marketing technique will bring more customers and profit in by beginning their holiday sales as early as possible. As a business student, I completely get it. Although as a human being, I would like for Halloween and Thanksgiving to be given the credit that they deserve.

What upsets me more than anything is the near-total sweep of Thanksgiving to the side, especially with the importance of the holiday. To me, it’s just as important as Christmas since it’s a day where families from near and far gather together to reflect back on the year to be thankful for everything. Nowadays, it has become a day on which people rush their Thanksgiving meals in order to catch the Black Friday “savings” since a majority of shopping malls and major retail stores have opened as early as 6 p.m. It seems that the day has changed from a family get-together to a countdown to go holiday shopping.

It’s time to bring back the fall holidays their respective times to be celebrated without being overshadowed by the winter sales and shopping.

Get yourself a Pumpkin Spice Latte (or my preference, the Salted Caramel Mocha).

Carve yourself a pumpkin even though Halloween is over, because fall isn’t over until mid-December.

Decorate your kitchen and bathroom with orange and brown leaf décor.

As much as I love playing Christmas music as soon as December hits, it’s only the beginning of November, y’all. Trust me, those sales will still be there next week. And lastly, just celebrate fall like it is. The leaves falling are breathtaking, and the food is delicious, too!