When Do We Melt Mariah?
Students chime in about when to celebrate, when to decorate and when to play our beloved holiday tunes.
With the close of Halloween, Marist students debate what holiday celebration should come next. Photo by Ava Kaloz '25
Every year, people across the nation debate whether or not to start decorating for the holiday season, and with that, if they should put away their craft pumpkins and toy ghosts in favor of Christmas trees, Menorahs and Kwanzaa candles.
Many argue that by putting aside classic fall decor, such as fake spider webs, cornucopias and leaf garlands, that people are ignoring an important holiday that deserves recognition: Thanksgiving. However, even more seem to want to open up their storage room to unearth their holiday furnishings, as they prepare to deck their halls and trim their homes.
This controversy doesn’t just plague the realm of decorations; instead, the question of when to play holiday music begins to be asked as radio stations, apps like Spotify and stores all begin to play beloved songs, including those of the infamous Mariah Carey.
Throughout campus, this same debate continued as students all around Marist College held different positions on this icy debate.
Andrew Pawlak ‘25, known around campus for his love of all things Christmas, was recently spotted wearing a Santa costume for a Halloween club event.
“I mean, I start [listening to] Christmas music in like April,” he said. “But I don’t really do anything else until after Halloween.”
Lauren Ponto ‘26 furthered this idea by adding, “Personally, I don’t like Thanksgiving because the people I have to spend it with ruin it.”
“I like to overlook Thanksgiving and just start the Christmas season early because it brings me joy,” she said.
While both of these students shared a love of celebrating the holiday season early at the start of November, some students didn’t quite agree with this mindset, arguing on the side of keeping their PSLs in hand and their orange-and-red decor out.
“You can’t just overlook a holiday. Thanksgiving is equal to Christmas in my book, and honestly, if I had to choose between the two, I’d pick Thanksgiving. It’s my favorite, and it needs to be recognized,” said Alyssa Bova ‘25.
Instead of simply progressing from Halloween into the winter holidays as most retail locations and social media outlets do, Bova, as well as many other students, believe that Thanksgiving is crucial to the fall season. With that, it is only until Thanksgiving is over that one should start to decorate for Christmas.
Abby Boender ‘25 added that celebrations for the winter holidays should begin in December.
“Thanksgiving deserves love, too,” she said.
It’s hard to say which side of the argument is right because there never will be a right or wrong as to when you, your family and your friends choose to celebrate a given holiday.
One thing is for certain, though. This great debate will continue for years to come, and decades from now, when we become our own cranky relatives, our kids and grandkids will argue right alongside us — well, hopefully.