In recent years, we’ve noticed that decorating for Christmas, both in homes and cities, starts earlier and earlier each year.

We all recall the Christmases of our childhood when we waited patiently for the general cleaning to be finished, for the house to shine with cleanliness, and only a week before the holidays, the decorations would go up. The anticipation was torturous, and the time we had to enjoy it was short. The tree and its glowing lights held an unparalleled charm for us, and the joy we stored up became a shield against the harshness of adulthood. We could sit for hours gazing at them. The light spilling out from the colorful bulbs emitted an energy of happiness, making it the best time of the year.

Over the years, the decorating date gradually shifted. More and more people began decorating earlier—most started in early December. This year, it began in November, and it might have started even earlier if October hadn’t been so warm.

But what’s behind this phenomenon?

It’s likely due to the fact that our everyday lives lack joy and warmth. The robotic lifestyle imposed by modern society, with movements choreographed to precision just to make it through the day, stifles every emotion. We run around like mad, each tied to their own chariot, with darkness prevailing due to financial and other problems, but mostly because of loneliness and alienation.

Christmas is a way to return to childhood, to carefree moments, and to our emotions. It’s an effort to rediscover joy within ourselves, to awaken—if only for a little while—that child who once saw every day as a celebration. It’s a chance to finally spend a day or two at home, to truly connect with the people closest to us, whom we usually brush off with hurried conversations and brief phone calls due to lack of time.

And yes, this early decorating puts us in the mood for emotional connection and loving intentions a bit sooner. It’s a ritual that ties us to our humanity, to those other Christmases we awaited with pure hearts and carefree minds, filled with gifts and traditional sweets. The twinkling lights, then, are a punch against the darkness surrounding us. A rainbow in a rainy, suffocating daily life—a second to dream as we glimpse the reflections of the lights on the ornaments. The bakeries start making melomakarona in early November, and we all wish for the joy to last just a little longer!

Because when joy doesn’t come on its own, we have to create it. To fight the hardships, we need injections of euphoria. That’s what Christmas and early decorating are—an injection of euphoria, a resistance to the colorless and barren routine. A magical ritual to sprinkle everything with gold dust and soften what drains our energy.