why I think Jesus would let Thanksgiving have its own time

This is the hill I will die on every year.

My biggest pet peeve is when people start doing things for Christmas before Thanksgiving. I'm talking Christmas music, lights, trees, decorations, even Starbucks drinks. Thanksgiving always gets looked over, and it disgusts me. And I know, if you're reading this, you either whole heartedly agree with me or you'd call me a grinch. I wonder if the grinch likes Thanksgiving.

Don't get me wrong. I LOVE Christmas and everything that comes with it. I will blast Ariana Grande's version of "Last Christmas", Justin Bieber's "Mistletoe", and all things Pentatonix and Straight No Chaser in my car's crappy speakers every day leading up to Christmas. But I refuse to start until the day after Thanksgiving. There's even a song about it. It's by Brandon Heath, and it's a masterpiece titled ... wait for it ... "The Day after Thanksgiving". It's my favorite Thanksgiving song. (And, no, that's not just because it's the only Thanksgiving song that exists. Yes, I've looked.) But that is what I will listen to every day leading up to Thanksgiving. It's super catchy too.

Let me tell you exactly why the whole Christmas before Thanksgiving thing drives me up a wall. Every year since I was in middle school, my dad's family has come down from Illinois during Thanksgiving break to celebrate the holidays together. Both holidays. And that's perfectly fine! It's the most reasonable time to do so. But. This is what we do: We wake up on the morning of Thanksgiving, sit together in the living room, and open Christmas presents for hours. Afterwards, we would have Thanksgiving dinner. I mean, seriously, Thanksgiving dinner AFTER an afternoon of Christmas? That's twisted.

And to add on to my distress each year, I had to look out of our clear, glass front door and watch everyone on my mom's side of the family celebrate Thanksgiving like rational people at my cousin's house. Tragic.

Let's make this clear: I absolutely love my dad's side of the family (my little cousins are precious and sweet as they can be, though they're not so little anymore, and I'm pretty sure they're all taller than me), and I want to get to celebrate Thanksgiving and Christmas with them. I just want to do Thanksgiving first. Is it too much to ask to let it have just one day to itself?

Now let me play the God card. Not because this is in the ten commandments or anything -- or in the Bible at all for that matter lol -- but just because I like to be dramatic. You know that saying, "What would Jesus do?" And you know the saying that was created to respond to that: "He would love first." Well, I think that is quite applicable here. I think that Jesus would let Thanksgiving have its own time. He would give it from the day after Halloween to Thanksgiving day. He would choose to love first, not be celebrated first #thegospel lol.

Plus, I think it's a holiday God would greatly approve of, right? (Minus, of course, the fact that it started after we destroyed the lives of an entire group of people. But then we ate dinner together harmoniously, right? Don't come for me on the legitimacy of the history; I never finished AP U.S. history. Thank you Covid.) Anyway, Thanksgiving is a holiday that gives us the opportunity to give internal and external thanks for all the blessings we have. That's beautiful. Plus, is there any evidence that Jesus was a preemie? If not, then why are we making Christmas start as soon as Halloween is over? (And yes, I know December 25 is not the historically accurate date that Jesus was born; just let the statement fulfill its duty of providing dramatic effect, okay?)

(Disclaimer: This is not affiliated with the Holy Bible and does not necessarily reflect what God himself would say.)

Not to get heated or anything, but you know what else is sad? Thanksgiving doesn't get special Hallmark movies or festive songs. If I were Thanksgiving, I would be offended. We don't start decorating for St. Patrick's day before Valentine's day just because we're so excited for it. But I guess nobody gets excited about St. Patrick's day anyway, so that's a bad argument. But you get the point #justiceforThanksgiving. Maybe I'll just become an advocate for every American holiday. That way, none of them will feel left out.

No disrespect to you if you're already in the Christmas spirit. Do your thing. I'll continue working on being slow to anger about it. But, personally, I will always protest doing Christmas festivities before the day after Thanksgiving. I go to RUF (a UTK campus ministry) every Tuesday, and they're having a Christmas themed session the week before Thanksgiving break. You best bet that I will come wearing my turkey hat.

Thankfully (ironic term to be used here), I convinced my family to at least eat Thanksgiving lunch and open presents after. Further, this year, I'm petitioning to have a true Thanksgiving (giving the holiday its own full day), then doing Christmas the day after. Wish me luck.