Every year, October rolls around, the leaves get crunchy, the breeze picks up, and Ugg Boots come out. Halloween approaches, and children set their minds to the annual task of collecting as much candy as they can. But as we get older, are these once-a-year sugar rushes the only thing on our minds? I can personally say with ease, that is not the case in my household.  While the younger family members gear up for a trick or treating extravaganza, the rest of use dream of the favorite holiday that we’ve been waiting for: Christmas.  

Christmas is arguably one of the most, if not the most enjoyable time of the year. The nostalgic evenings watching movies with your family, the thrill of Christmas Eve, and the excitement leading up to Christmas morning just can’t be beat. It’s undoubtedly made better by the sweetest sounds of the season: Christmas tunes! There is no possible way to be in a bad mood while listening to Christmas music. It is simply impossible.  Logically, that causes you to want to listen to happy music all the time, right? Thanksgiving and Black Friday kick off the holiday season for many, but how early is too early? Is November 1st becoming the new start to the season? Does starting to listen to Christmas music before November, before Halloween even, ruin the holiday? In my world, this has come to be one of the most widely debated questions of fall and winter months.

Radio stations such as 93.9 FM typically start broadcasting the holiday music after Thanksgiving. But with streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music, Christmas music is available realistically all year. Black Friday is the day that parents gear up and shop till they drop at the crack of dawn. They return home with gifts that won’t be opened for another month, but regardless, it seems like the Christmas season universally has an accepted beginning after Thanksgiving. In my house, you can hear “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” blasting out of speakers in mid-September. Personally, I start listening right before Halloween.  It is the perfect time frame to let the weather get cold, feel those autumn colors, and build up excitement for the impending shoveling. 

It the end, it’s all personal preference. Some like to wait out and enjoy scary movies of Halloween, and some like to push it even farther and anticipate the family Thanksgiving dinner before they start their musical kick. As a firm believer in Christmas as the best season, I say we start as early as possible. As Will Ferrell says in the Christmas Classic, Elf, “The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.”