Thanksgiving...forget it!

I think it is already becoming the forgotten holiday. Don't believe me? Go to Walmart or any other retailer during the week of Thanksgiving and what do you see? There are no displays or even merchandise that is out that supports the holiday. Food doesn't count. Food is always there. No, really... go to a retailer, any mega mart, the day before or even the day of any other holiday. Valentine's Day, Independence Day or Halloween. If you go to Walmart then, you will still see flower's and hearts for February 14th, fireworks and red, white and blue items being sold the day of July 4th and Halloween will have costumes and candy for a week following the holiday. This year my wife wanted to have Thanksgiving themed plates, napkins and the like for our meal. Even 2 or 3 days before the holiday she could not find anything that resembled autumn, the harvest time let alone Thanksgiving. So we ate off of Christmas themed paper plates. I was disappointed when I cleared the mashed potatoes off my plate to see a smiling snowman staring at me.

Unfortunately for many, the reason for the holiday has changed. Families still get together and hastily put together the obligatory turkey, stuffing and pumpkin pies. But their fervor and passion are being channeled into the night of Thanksgiving. Taking a page out of the NFL, families get into a huddle around the table to make their plans. Ads are being scrutinized, lists reviewed, prices compared, maps are drawn and strict time schedules created. People put more care, planning and emotion into their shopping itineraries than they do in planning a family vacation.

Thanksgiving used to be important. Now it's only important because it acts as a vehicle for Black Friday. The shopaholic's needs are sated during a 15 hour shopping marathon as they adopt all the pleasantries and politeness of a hockey match. Christmas is all about giving and sharing and all kinds of happiness. However, we tend to start the season off with shoving, pushing and arguing with our fellow man all to make sure we get the Silly Sally doll on sale.

I understand that people like to be able to get together and shop together. I understand that the Thanksgiving holiday allows these moments to come about. My question is does Black Friday have to start on Thanksgiving Thursday? Can't we just leave the fourth Thursday of each November alone? In my opinion, it is time we give proper thanks for the proper things on the proper day. If we could do this, I would be even more grateful.