Memorial Day has passed on the Gregorian calendar. Halloween is now less than 150 days away. Soon, we will start seeing decor in stores, and feel the shifts in the air as more and more people start to think about and plan out their Halloweens.
But, sadly, there is another thing that happens during this time of the calendar year.
The inexplicable species known as “summer people” come out of the woodwork and start whining that autumn people should “STOP RUSHING THE SEASONS!!!!”, as if it’s some horrible crime not to enjoy sweltering hot weather and blinding sun. As if it’s a crime to enjoy and look forward to something that takes a long and painful year to make its way back to us.
No one, not even those inexplicable summer folk, should have to feel like like they’re in the wrong for looking forward to something. Throughout my entire life, autumn and Halloween have been my salvation. There are probably many things that I wouldn’t have made it through, if it hadn’t been for the promise of Halloween-time coming back around. Yes, I “rush” it, because it’s the only time I feel truly alive and like I belong in this world.
But what does “rushing the seasons” even really mean?
First of all, I honestly feel like Halloween actually gets the smallest amount of retail attention in most big-box stores. Yes, craft stores start early, but that’s with every season. Craft stores are marketing to makers, and makers need to have time to, well, make, and if they plan to sell, probably even a little more time to get everything set up and on the market before everyone has already purchased their decor for the season. A craft store being ready for Halloween in July, is honestly right on schedule. There are a few other stores who start early, like At Home or, to a slightly lesser extent, the TJX stores, but for every store that starts early, there’s a store like Walmart or Target that doesn’t really get going until September, or sometimes even October itself, once the back to school stuff is cleared out, and then, by the time these stores’ Halloween sections are fully stocked, a day or two later, they’re being downsized to make way for Christmas. Christmas starts earlier and earlier each year, both in stores and just in general. My entire being cringes when I think about the Hallmark Channel marathoning their basic, repetitive Christmas romance movies on Halloween night, but I know it happens. Wouldn't the definition of “rushing the seasons” be celebrating one holiday on the night of another? Because it sure sounds suspicious to me. Regardless, my point here is, if Halloween didn’t start early by layman standards, merchandise would be on the shelf for maybe two weeks at best, with the way Christmas is pushed.
But Christmas isn't the only season that seems to have to some sort of free pass to be rushed.
Take a moment, if you're in the US, to think about Memorial Day. This holiday, supposed to be a day of remembrance of those that gave their lives so that we could freely live ours, has become known as little more than the explosive start to summer. That in itself is honestly disgusting. Summer people can't even be bothered to listen to the lyrics of some of the country songs they blast while getting trashed at their twice-a-week barbecues and understand that Memorial Day is not actually a holiday about drinking and barbecuing. It's not meant to signify summer, it's meant to signify something much deeper than that!
The meaning of the holiday isn't the only thing that summer people can't seem to grasp, though. While they bleat like a dying sheep on a broken record about "rushing the seasons", never once do they stop and consider the fact that Memorial Day falls in May. Is it completely wrong to say they're making fools of themselves, running around berating others for "rushing the seasons", when they're literally trying to say that summer starts almost a whole month before the actual summer solstice?!
Of course, people have their reasons for liking summer, and willing it to be here sooner than it actually is, but I have my reasons for disliking it (one of which being I have actual reverse seasonal depression and would feel like complete overheated dog shit in summer even if my favorite holiday was July 4th) and hey, if you love a season so much you're basically trying to break the laws of science to insist it starts sooner than it actually does, maybe you should have some empathy and understanding for people that feel that way about a different season, especially one that gets "rushed" away very quickly by a holiday that's not until two months later.
And for the love of God, please, if you are following someone on social media who runs a page dedicated to autumn and/or Halloween, whether it's a personal page or a public group or anything of the sort, do not under any circumstances make "rushing the seasons" comments on those pages. You know who you followed. Complaining about "early" seasonal content on a page that's clearly devoted to that season either makes you look an asshole or an idiot, or some combination of the two.
Also, is it really "ruining your summer" to have to walk past some fake leaves and plastic pumpkins when you go into a store? Or see an excited friend counting down on social media? As autumn/Halloween people, we struggle with the things we're searching for in the stores literally being ripped from the shelves to make way for Christmas. No one is taking away your pool, your barbecue, or your beach vacation so that an autumn person can buy a pumpkin in July or early August. Just walk on by and go grab your pool cleaner or watermelon or whatever it is that summer people shop for. No one is asking you, particularly, to "rush the seasons" if you don't want to.
For some of us, seeing that first, "too early" sign of autumn or Halloween in a store brings us back to life. Shouldn't we embrace that, no matter what the calendar says?
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