You would think that after a large meal the only thing that most people would want is to park themselves on the couch and watch the Harbaugh brothers face off in the last Thanksgiving Day football game. However, it seems like engines are being fired up and everyone is headed to the nearest door-buster as soon as the turkey and mashed potatoes are dished into Tupperware containers. You know what this means- Christmas season has officially begun. Like most people, I grumble at the idea of celebrating a holiday a month before the actual day. I resent the way that Christmas songs have invaded radio stations and cringe at the sound of jingle bells. But regardless of the number of eyes that roll at the sight of a lit wreath hanging on your parent’s front door before snow frosts the ground the Christmas season will hit the United States- an unstoppable force. So instead of butting heads with the Christmas season, concentrate on the positive things that are associated with this hurricane of a holiday.

When stockings and ornaments make their appearance, our “limited-time only” favorites do as well. Grocery stores start stocking egg nog and coffee shops serve spiced cider and peppermint flavored brews. To accompany these seasonal drinks, mothers pull out their special recipes and fill the home with the smell of baking cookies, which are always in supply during this season. It’s this time of year that movies such as “A Charlie Brown Christmas” and “The Grinch” (the original, not the Jim Carrey version) are aired on multiple channels.

As we all know, as finals week approaches we tend to stay up later and wake up earlier…and the sun seems to have the opposite idea. Fortunately, holiday season enthusiasts put up their Christmas lights about the time that darkness takes over. I do not think that anyone could dislike the twinkling lights that line the rooftops of neighborhood houses. Remember how fun it was as a kid to see that one house that you were certain could be seen from outer space? This phenomenon is one that is only seen during the excessive 30+ days that Christmas is celebrated.

Finally, the beginning of the Christmas season signals the end of the semester. One we get back from Thanksgiving break there are only three weeks left in the semester. And only two of them involve classes. It is during this time that we begin to see the light at the end of the tunnel. If you can not appreciate the season drinks, the classic movies or the Christmas lights, you can at least allow this one bit of optimism to keep you warm through the beginnings of winter.