It's that time of the year again where Christmas decorations have already hit stores and it's not even Thanksgiving yet. Christmas may be a big holiday in the United States but I think it's time that Thanksgiving steps out of the shadow and takes the spotlight. Here's why:
1. It's a time to be thankful.
It's called Thanksgiving for a reason. You're supposed to give thanks for being alive, for all that you have and to the people you care about. It's a time to let go of all of the things that you complain about on the daily and truly appreciate the life that you live.
2. It's a time for family.
Christmas is also a time for family but there are a ton of other things going on at Christmas time. Thanksgiving is more chill and relaxing. It's the first time going home from college since summer break which makes the aspect of going home even more appealing. You get to relax with your family for a few days before returning to the tortures of school.
3. You get to enjoy good food!
This is important for college kids who eat chipotle five days a week because they finally get to eat a home-cooked meal. Thanksgiving is a downright feast. If there isn't a bunch of leftovers to eat for the next few weeks, then you're doing it wrong. The more food, the better. By the end of the night, everyone should feel like their pants are too tight; they may even have to unbutton them.
4. There's football.
Even if you're not a big football fan, Thanksgiving is one of the few times you don't complain about football being on the tv. It makes for good background noise while the turkey is roasting or after dinner when everyone is content and chatting with family.
5. You don't have to worry about presents.
There's nothing worse than Christmas shopping and since it's not Christmas, you shouldn't be worrying about it...until the day after Thanksgiving. During Thanksgiving, you just have to make sure you get your person to dinner on time.
6. The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
A bunch of gigantic balloons and floats traveling down the streets of New York City, what could be better than that? Unless you're one of those people who go in person, you see tons of iconic figures in balloon form from the comfort of your home. Then, right after the parade, you get to watch football! It's an excellent precursor.
7. The weather is perfect.
In the city of Tallahassee at least. Since I'm from Maryland, I love when November comes and it actually starts to feel like fall. It's not terribly cold and it's not sweltering like it normally is. There's a happy medium and I couldn't be more excited about it. It's the perfect weather for hot cocoa and bonfires.
8. It's not an attention whore.
Christmas is. Thanksgiving doesn't get all of the overhype that Christmas does. You can find Christmas decorations and hear Christmas songs playing in stores as soon as the day after Halloween. It's disgusting. Christmas completely overshadows Thanksgiving, yet they're a month apart. So why can't Thanksgiving have the month of November and Christmas have December? The world may never know.
9. Overall, it's more chill.
Even though Thanksgiving is only a 4-day break compared to Christmas being a 3-week break, Thanksgiving is a sweet break. Whereas Christmas marks the break between two semesters, Thanksgiving is more of a time to take a breather from classes before having to return and finish out the semester. You may still have some work to do but at least you don't have to go to classes. Plus, Christmas is just a more stressful time of year but Thanksgiving doesn't hold much stress except for dinner prep. So, you have more time to chill!
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