You walk into your favorite retail store where you are suddenly greeted with the glorious smell of cinnamon and spice along with bright shades of red and green popping out of every aisle, as if to say “hello.” You’re thinking to yourself, “It must be Christmas time!” But looking at your calendar you realize it is only November.

Each year, the minute Halloween ends, Christmas comes and breaks down the doors of nearly every retail store. From trees and lights to ornaments and candy, the holiday takes over every aisle, leaving you nowhere to run. But maybe, just maybe, if you look hard enough you might find that one lonely aisle with the tiniest sprinkle of fall orange and yellows, turkey decorations and all the fixings for Thanksgiving dinner.

The aisle sits there, collecting dust as excited shoppers pass by rushing straight toward all the Christmas decorations and gifts, forgetting that Thanksgiving is still to come.

Thanksgiving is a beautiful holiday that truly deserves it’s time to shine. It’s a holiday where we celebrate family, friends, and good fortune (among other things) with an abundance of turkey, ham, potatoes, and pie.

But instead of enjoying what we have, and celebrating with food, we have become accustomed to sitting around and wishing for more or for better.

The world seems to move so quickly nowadays, fueled by money, power, and technology. We should be thankful for a day off school and off work where we can take time to be with our family and/or friends, not getting greedy over gifts and counting down to the next holiday.

Instead of counting down the days to Christmas or the hours until Black Friday sales start, we should be making the most of our Thanksgiving holidays before they become a tradition of the past.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Christmas more than anyone I have ever met. For me, October 1 isn’t even too early to start popping in those Christmas movies and dreaming of snow in my free time. But despite my obsession and love of the Christmas season, I think that we need to stop and take that extra day that we are given to just be thankful for all that you have.

So ignore the red and green twinkles! Go brush the dust off that Thanksgiving aisle and prepare yourselves for the holiday ahead.