IN RECENT YEARS, Thanksgiving week has become one of the most stressful times of the year.
Not because of turkey. The tryptophan makes us too sleepy to be stressed.
No, the pressure we experience during this week is because of our rush to take advantage of Black Friday sales. Well, wait, it’s not really just Friday anymore, since so many retailers are trying to get the jump on the competition. So, let’s call it Black Week, or Black Fortnight. Oh, forget it. Let’s call November Black Month (no disrespect to February).
None of this is November’s fault, of course. It didn’t ask to be the month that retailers count on to get them back in the black. It didn’t even ask to be the month when we decide to give thanks.
The only thing November wanted was to watch the leaves fall, to play host to strong winds and to poke fun at our unpreparedness for its occasionally overwhelming snowstorms.
Unfortunately, November can’t just sit back and chill, because it’s got that Thursday holiday that comes a month before Christmas. November has to help us to end the year on a high note.
That’s where Black Friday came from.
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Solomon Jones is an Essence bestselling author and award-winning columnist. He is the creator and editor of Solomonjones.com and morning host on 900 am WURD radio. Click here to learn more about Solomon
