Another month has just slipped by and we find ourselves even closer to the holiday season.

I don’t know if anyone feels this way, but this year has just gone so quickly. I can’t believe that within a few weeks the two major holidays would have come and gone and we’ll be preparing for a whole new year.

As usual I have already acquired many of the Christmas gifts I’ll be giving this year so I’m looking forward to the time I’ll have watching others. The department stores have already prepared themselves for the crowds and have already started their claims of having the &uot;biggest sale&uot; of the century. You know it is nice to see all the Christmas trees and displays in store, but we all have to admit they are starting to put them up a little earlier every year.

I actually started seeing signs of Christmas in the stores the first of October. Usually they have Halloween on one side of the aisle and Christmas on the other, but this year they had Christmas up even before Halloween. For whatever reason, people are shopping though and I guess they figure if it’s already being displayed why not take advantage of it.

Personally, I’m contemplating whether I’ll put up a Christmas tree or not. It’s only me and without the nieces and nephews around the house, it doesn’t feel much like Christmas these days. I remember when my nieces and nephews were small and how excited I was to wake them up in the morning just to tell them Santa had come. I remember the excitement on the faces and that in turn was all you wanted and needed for Christmas. Now my nieces and nephews have children of their own and their own homes and the excitement of waking them up in locked away in their houses and I can’t see the surprise – the oohs and aahs. That’s something you can really miss and it certainly changes your perspective of the holiday.

With that in mind I thought maybe putting up a tree would add to the spirit of the holiday this year. I don’t want a real big tree and I don’t want to put it up so early that I’ll get tired of it, but I’ll think about it a little more before I make that investment. The sound of Christmas music in the stores and on the radio will probably get me more in the mood and I’ll be in the crowds then picking up a few items for next year.

By the way, while you’re out don’t forget about someone who is less fortunate than yourself. Pick up that extra toys, a sweater or even a hat and gloves for some child who may not have anything under the tree this year. There are a lot of families out there because of circumstances they can’t control in need of some special blessings this year. Why don’t you dedicate yourself to be a special blessing to someone during the holiday season? Why don’t you encourage someone’s holiday spirit with a gift of kindness and a deed of good cheer? I promise you, you won’t regret it and you’re never miss it.