Is the Christmas season upon us already?

When we were grocery shopping on Sunday, Christmas music was playing over the PA system. I've seen Christmas decorations out for quite a while, and that doesn't bother me, but Christmas music in early November does bother me. (Maybe "bother me" is a strong term...I guess I just think it's silly, and a little too pushy to start marketing Christmas nearly two months early.) The radio station I listen to plays Christmas music from Dec 1 until Christmas, and I love that, because I feel that Thanksgiving officially kicks off the Christmas season. Oh well, I'm just going to try to embrace and enjoy. Many people I know have talked about cutting back this Christmas season, but I think that's great, to be honest. We usually get a lot of gifts of items we really don't need...frivolous stuff that collects dust and isn't of any use to us. I'd be fine if I didn't receive gifts at all, but it's inevitable that our families will give us stuff, so I've stressed the importance of only giving us stuff that we NEED, or maybe stuff that is a little nicer than we'd normally buy for ourselves, like real maple syrup or jewelry making supplies.

I can't help but think that with all of the cutbacks that people are making this season, maybe it will be better for us. Maybe it will help us get back to the "true meaning" of Christmas, which is different for just about everyone, while at the same time bearing the same meaning universally...kindness and love.