Secular seasons

For me, the day after Halloween is one of the happiest of the year. While the rest of the world lies in bed, moaning about how Almond Joys should not be accompanied by blueberry vodka, I get up early and greet the world with an enthusiasm unmatched on any other day of the year. You see, after the pumpkins start to rot and the cotton spider webs blow away, icicle lights and candy canes begin to manifest themselves. \nLadies and gentlemen, we have officially entered “the holiday season.” From now until Dec. 25, every day will be Christmas.\nMaybe it’s the carols. Maybe it’s the gingerbread lattes from Starbucks. And maybe it’s just that famous Christmas spirit. For whatever the reason, I am a yule addict. During the next two months, I will be happy as a lark decking the halls and rocking around the Christmas tree. \nOh, and did I mention I don’t even celebrate Christmas?\nYep, we Jews have always been big fans of Dec. 25, and the season leading up to it. In fact, “White Christmas,” one of the carols that have become American standards, was written by Irving Berlin, a Russian Jewish immigrant. \nWhat can I say? I just happen to think that everyone is happier, more considerate and more giving around this time of the year. Despite the overt commercialism and the somewhat voyeuristic, creepy thought of a fat man in a red suit breaking into houses and filling children’s socks with trinkets, just think about how many service projects, food drives and the like take place.\nThink about going home and seeing family and friends who have been far away from you all year. I don’t care what religion you are – everyone can appreciate that. \nUshered in by the near overnight makeover of the candy aisle at Kroger from orange-and-black-and-fallish to red-and-green-and-winterish, the Novembers and Decembers of our lives are filled with memories of holiday traditions, even the bizarre ones. For my family, what that entails is spending a few nights during the holiday season driving around town, listening to the obnoxious all-holiday lineup on the radio and looking for the best Christmas lights suburban Tennessee has to offer. Then, on Christmas day, we go to the movie theater, usually to see a flick starring Ben Stiller, who always manages to have a movie opening on Christmas. The best part of that particular family tradition is that while we’re there, without fail, we run into at least about 95 percent of our synagogue; what else is there for us to do on Christmas?\nSadly, the season is not yet in full swing, and we will have to suffer through one more intervening holiday before “A Christmas Story” victoriously takes over the air waves. Until then, I plan on stashing my Halloween candy, throwing away my rotting pumpkin and probing the seasonal aisle at Target on a weekly basis. After all, ‘tis the season.\nTwo more months to go. Let the countdown begin.