Written By: Isaac Villegas, Staff Writer
As soon as the clock hits midnight on November 1st, Halloween season is over, and the next time you decide to scroll through social media, you will most likely be bombarded with videos announcing that Mariah Carey has officially begun “defrosting.” These are the first signs that mark the beginning of a very long celebration of Christmas and the winter season, but should we really give the holidays in December the amount of attention that we do before Thanksgiving even occurs?
(Before we go any further, I would like to state now that I am separating both Thanksgiving and Christmas from their historical/religious backgrounds for the sake of ethically arguing in favor of the former. I do NOT and will NEVER condone the brutal history behind Thanksgiving and instead, I aim to solely focus on the holiday itself and the way it is typically celebrated.)
Christmas is, without a doubt, one of the most popular holidays and with good reasoning; the gift-giving, the songs, and the overall holiday cheer all make up to be one of the warmest and coziest times of the year. I am not necessarily arguing that it should be celebrated less or at a later time but rather, I believe that Thanksgiving (in terms of its own holiday magic and nothing else) should not go as overlooked as it is due to these other major holidays. Thanksgiving is the one day out of the year that reminds everyone what they have to be grateful for in their lives, which is objectively a great thing. It reminds us as humans that there are so many things to live for and to be appreciative of, and we may not encounter that same kind of feeling on a holiday that is usually more centered on gifts and songs.
To add on, Thanksgiving and Christmas are actually more alike than we may think. They both have great holiday foods and, traditionally, these holidays are usually spent with family. Where Christmas has gingerbread houses, candy canes, and eggnog, Thanksgiving has baked mac n chese, smoked ham, and turkey. Truth be told, when my argument to why I believe Thanskgiving should not be overlooked gets boiled down to its core, you would find that I am just a foodie that really looks forward to eating a ton of good food on that special Thursday in November. But moving on, whereas Christmas lifts up the family’s spirits, Thanksgiving has that same exact effect (perhaps an even stronger effect due to everyone’s feelings of gratitude) along with, let’s face it, a side of family drama that keeps the holiday entertaining. Given these holidays’ striking similarities, why, then, is one much more celebrated and looked forward to than the other?
Thanksgiving may not be as fun as Christmas due to the lack of presents and low number of music playlists on streaming services, but I still believe it is essential we celebrate it due to the lessons it teaches us. Thanksgiving keeps us grounded, reminding us of our humanity and really allowing us to recognize all of the many wonderful things in our lives. Christmas may lift your spirits and give you hope for the future with your new presents and other things of the sort, but Thanksgiving gives you hope and faith in the present. It lets you be vulnerable enough to tell the people in your life that you are grateful for them. Does it really get better than that?
Overall, Christmas is undoubtedly still one of the best holidays out there and it is always a great celebration to end the year with. However, it wouldn’t hurt to pay just a little more attention to the American holiday that precedes it, too. I am sure that Mariah Carey can hold on to her reindeer and stay inside her ice block for just a few more weeks.