Holiday state of mind

Kim Kovach

It starts earlier each year. Those first signs of the upcoming holiday season: displays of pumpkins and Halloween candy at the supermarket in August followed by decorative holiday cards and ornaments in early November.

The sights, sounds and scents of the holiday season send subliminal messages to our brains. Twinkling lights wrapped around tree branches and store fronts on Main Street – festive! Giant inflatable Santa Claus and snowmen on front lawns – be jolly, Christmas is coming! Lavishly decorated store windows, downtown displays and craft markets – the holidays are here! Red, white, silver, blue, and gold wrapped gifts and packaged confections – be merry! Lit candles in menorahs placed in front windows – Hanukkah is here!

The scents of cinnamon and sugar beckon us inside of bakeries and pastry shops. The warmth of simmering apple cider with cinnamon, cloves and orange slices on the stove makes the house smell so inviting! Big business has caught on to the power of our olfactory senses. The shopping district along Fifth Avenue in Manhattan has installations of greenery set up along the sidewalk with sensors giving off whiffs of fresh pine into the air. Passersby appreciate the scent of pine trees as a welcome change to the typical smells of the city.

That holiday state of mind kicks into gear when we hear certain songs, too. I always smile when I hear Adam Sandler singing “The Chanukah Song” from his skit on Saturday Night Live in December 1994. I also smile when I hear that goofy holiday song, “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer” first released in 1979 by the duo Elmo & Patsy.

On the weekends there are holiday craft fairs, gingerbread making activities, choir and bell ringing performances, ornament making programs and musical concerts to get people in that holiday mood.

Couch potatoes can sit back with a cup of hot chocolate and a few homemade ginger cookies to watch all of the classic holiday movies on television. It’s a Wonderful Life has the nostalgia factor, while modern family-friendly fare includes the Home Alone movies, Elf, and remakes of How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Apparently, Hallmark Christmas movies have a cult-like following with holiday themed romance movie marathons pulling in viewers of all ages.

Human beings are influenced by the sights and sounds and smells around us. What if you lived in a town with a holiday-themed name? Would your attitude be affected every time you saw that road sign with the name of your town while driving to work, school and yoga? I did my Google research and was astounded by the number of towns across the U.S. with holiday-sounding names. Did you know that 11 towns are named Garland (from Texas to Nebraska, Wyoming to Tennessee)?

There is a Noel, Missouri. Two towns are named North Pole – one in Alaska and one in upstate New York. There is a little town of Bethlehem in Pennsylvania and in North Carolina. Would you be in a holiday mood if you lived in Holly, Michigan, or Wintergreen, Virginia, or Mistletoe, Kentucky?

Residents of Rudolph, Wisconsin, and Snowflake, Arizona, are probably a festive bunch. What about the folks who live year-round in Christmas Cove, Maine, or Christmas Valley, Oregon, and Christmas, Florida, and Christmas, Michigan?

Four towns across America are named Santa Claus – can you believe it? If you want to stay in a happy mood with a holiday attitude of good cheer to all, perhaps you might consider moving to the town of Santa Claus in Georgia, Indiana, Arizona or New Mexico!

Kim Kovach wishes readers a very happy holiday season! Please visit Kim at www.kimkovachwrites.com.