Next marked date is Thanksgiving day on the fourth Thursday of November, which is indeed a public holiday and a wonderful American tradition enjoyed for many years. Though  lately, it seems to be increasingly overshadowed by preparations for "the holidays." Holiday shopping, holiday gifts, holiday cooking, holiday clothes, holiday songs. Holiday viewing.

After Thanksgiving day, the only other marked dates on my calendar is December 9, the first day of Hanukkah. Although a noted, very important day to those of the Jewish faith, it's still not a national public holiday. In fact, other than Thanksgiving day, the only U.S. national holiday left in the year on my calendar is December 25th, Christmas day, when Americans along with many other nations have celebrated the birth of Jesus Christ for hundreds of years.

Not so long ago, as the end of November neared, most referred to 'the holidays" to include Thanksgiving and Christmas. Once Thanksgiving had passed, then people would start their Christmas shopping, maybe for a Christmas tree, and some Christmas gifts. Christmas carols would then be heard in the streets and stores bringing shoppers that warm Yuletide cheer as the days drew closer to December 25th. Churches, as well as many stores, would display Nativity scenes, people would greet each other with a hearty "Merry Christmas." The pure joy of Christmas was what encouraged people to choose that special gift for their loved ones, it didn't have to be expensive, just something thoughtful and useful.

Today, it's all about shopping. Stores try to lure people to spend money they may not have three months before Christmas. Not only can this cause stress to people struggling on a budget, it also takes away the magic and the true meaning of the Christmas season. Today "the holidays" mean iPods and iPads, laptops and electronic games and big screen TV's. Major merchants show constant advertisements for expensive gifts in the hope the shopper will cave-in, splurge with their credit card and buy just because, "hey, it's Christmas."

When you ask a small child what would they like Santa to bring them, they look at you as if you are crazy. They don't want to go to the mall to sit on dear old St. Nick's lap or send their gift list to the North Pole, it's all: "I want this and buy me that."

Parents are pressurized into buying gifts they cannot afford, just so their child won't feel left out with the latest gadgets. Christmas parades, shows and events are held way too early, that by the time the actual Yuletide season approaches, everything has already "been, seen, and done."

American traditions are passed down from generation to generation, but unless we do something about it now, those grassroots basic Christmas customs we once enjoyed, will disappear into the over-commercialized, politically correct, holidays they are now becoming.

America must take back its traditions by concentrating and celebrating each individual public holiday for what it represents.

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