When the stomach aches from Halloween candy are nearly gone, they arise once more from Christmas cookies. The sequence of the most celebrated end-of-the-year holidays goes Halloween, Thanksgiving and, finally, Christmas. Stores, television channels and radio stations generally begin Christmas celebrations before Thanksgiving even occurs, disregarding this chronological sequence. Antioch Community High School students also participate in premature Christmas celebrations.

“I start getting into the Christmas spirit right after Halloween by setting up decorations, planning out Christmas lists, getting others’ gifts and listening to Christmas music,” sophomore Julia Galway said.

Resisting the urge to get into the Christmas spirit may be hard considering how early Christmas decorations are displayed in stores. ACHS students claim they saw Christmas decorations set out as early as August or September, four months before the holiday.

Despite Thanksgiving being an American-bred holiday, Christmas may have a larger culture behind it. Ultimately, society can obtain a larger financial gain from Christmas compared to Thanksgiving.

“It is more of a commercial holiday and it is heavily advertised,” freshman Paul Adams said. 

Television commercials during the last couple months of the year are packed with advertisements for retail stores. Jobs are created due to the increase in sales. It is the height of sales for Christmas tree farms. Children become excited about their possible new toys. From the eyes of a child, a new shiny toy may seem more appealing than quality family time.

Another contributor may be that Christmas can get more attention than Thanksgiving because they have different purposes.

“Thanksgiving is a time where you are supposed to celebrate being with [your family],” junior Samantha Milliken said.

Some may argue that Christmas has become society’s holiday for economic gain, while Thanksgiving has a sentimental meaning of being thankful for what one has.