As we bid farewell to the ghosts and goblins and pumpkins, retailers are quickly stocking their shelves with Christmas trees and festive toys and boxed gift sets. It's enough to make us shake our heads. We're barely out of celebrating one holiday when we feel bombarded by another. But that isn't necessarily the focus of this post. Are we missing something? Are we forgetting to acknowledge a very important and significant day? Isn't there a monumental day between October 31st and Dec 25th that shouldn't be glossed over? Philanthropist Brett Wilson certainly thinks so. On Sunday morning, he tweeted "Reminder to retailers - until November 12th - don't even think about #XmasDecorations - yup - #RespectOurVeterans w/the #RedPoppy Please RT." "In my mind, there's no economic need to be hitting us with two months worth of Christmas, and it strikes me there's opportunity to push back a little bit, while raising the profile of what Nov. 11 is all about." It's much easier and economical for the retailers to shift from Thanksgving to Halloween to Christmas without so much as batting an eye at Remembrance Day, but isn't ignoring it almost as bad as disrespecting it? "I feel pretty passionately about it. We as consumers have a choice, and I'm not suggesting we start a nation-wide boycott, but when you walk into a store, why not make a comment to the clerk or whoever is greeting you, that it would be nice if they'd get rid of the Christmas stuff." Brett is hoping that if we all get involved and make a point of voicing our dislike of Christmas displays prior to Remembrance Day, Canadian retailers will establish a tradition of respecting our veterans and hold off until November 12th. I will gladly stand behind Brett and honour our veterans. Let's all take a stand together and give them the respect they so deserve. Say NO to Christmas shopping until after November 12th. For all that they do for us and our country, it's the absolute least we can do for them. photo courtesy of Korona Lacasse/Flickr