It’s Time To Celebrate...Anything ~ by Leah St. James

It’s the middle of September, and the Halloween decorations and costumes have been out in my town since the first week of August...a full MONTH before the kids went back school! When I was a kid, we wouldn’t even think about Halloween until October, or maybe mid-September. But in today’s world of super-rushed shopping seasons, it was apparently right on schedule.

Of course, being the media-savvy author that I am,  I took a shot with my phone and posted it to Twitter. My caption was something like “REALLY, Halloween??? The kids aren’t even in school yet!!”  

If I was expecting a flood of empathetic rage, I was deeply disappointed. No outrage by fellow Tweeters. Not a peep!

Then I realized why. The world is okay with this.

In fact, only a week later, someone else posted a photo that somewhere, in some store in America, the Christmas decorations were up...half a month BEFORE LABOR DAY. (Geez...even when I’m ahead of myself I’m behind the trends!)

Again no outrage.

After thinking about it for a few minutes, I decided it must be that we’re all so depressed about the craziness of the world, we grasp at any and every reason to celebrate...anything. My problem with rushing the holidays is that (for me) it takes away the special-ness of the day. (Not to mention, some of us need all the time we can get to mentally prepare for these big events. Let us...or me... be blissfully ignorant for a few weeks, would you?)

Besides, there are alternatives. No need to start decorating for Halloween in August. Every day, some organization or company or group is celebrating some event/group/food/idea that is deserving of your attention.

Take today, for example, September 22nd. According to website checkiday.com, there are no less than a dozen causes to celebrate today.

For one, it’s the Fall (or Autumnal) Equinox. Yippee!!! In North America, as we officially see less and less sun each day for the next several months, the temperatures will drop. For some, it will bring moderate temperatures, relief from a scorching-hot summer. For those in the north and higher elevations, it means it won’t be long before we see snow and ice and....ugh. Enough about that.

Happily (again according to that website), it’s also:

• Business Women’s Day
• International Day of Radiant Peace
  (which I believe is quite serious, so I won’t say anything snarky)
• National Centenarian’s Day
• National Elephant Appreciation Day
• National Hobbit Day
  (birthdays of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins)
• National Ice Cream Cone Day
  (not to be confused with National Ice Cream --in a dish--Day)
• National White Chocolate Day
  (not to be confused with National Dark or Milk Chocolate Day)
• Proposal Day
• World Rhino Day, and....
• World Carfree Day!
  (When I first saw this, I thought it was CARE-Free day. But it’s CAR-free...a day to celebrate getting from here to there without an automobile. ... Who’d have thought?)

There is also a day devoted to journaling, but apparently the exact holiday is copyrighted (really?) and I need the organization’s permission to even mention it. (I wish I had time to write and ask for their permission, but I don’t, so I’ll leave the actual name and its intended celebrations to your imagination. I’m disappointed...it would have been a good one for us writers to focus on.)

Oh, and if you’re looking for month-long celebrations, September is National Organic Harvest Month and National Piano Month.

So...if you’re already tempted to whip out your plastic pumpkins or (please, nooooooo) your Christmas tree, consider instead baking an elephant-shaped birthday cake for Bilbo and Frodo. Make sure you use organically grown and harvested ingredients which you’ll purchase by riding your bicycle (or maybe a bus...or even taking a stroll) to and from the local woman-owned grocery store.  And don’t forget the ice cream and cones while you’re there. 

During the birthday party, ask your favorite Centenarian to take a seat behind the piano to offer musical birthday wishes. (Everybody who’s a hundred years old knows how to play piano...right?) Maybe he or she can shift into some favorite Hippie peace tunes from the ‘60s. (Hey...I was around back then. I can poke fun!)

When the party’s over, even though we didn't hit every single holiday on the day's list, I think you’ll be holiday-ed out...at least until September 23, which is:

• Great American Pot Pie Day and...

:-)
.....................

Leah writes stories of mystery and romance, good and evil and the power of love.

Please visit her at her website or Facebook (where she loves posting photos and videos of her son's kitten, Hercules). On Wednesdays you'll find her on Twitter  sharing lines from her current Work in Progress for #1LineWed.