People may be ‘generating hope’ by decorating early this year

BANGOR, Maine (WABI) - Every year, it’s a guarantee: some will decorate for Christmas early rather than following the popular tradition of doing it the day after Thanksgiving.

This year it seems Christmas is everywhere and lots of people have decided to join the trend of decking the halls much earlier than ever before.

Around the Bangor area when the sun goes down you can already see Christmas lights shining bright on many homes.

Even some neighborhoods are all lit up.

It’s happening all over the country, too. Some people even started stringing up lights well before November 1st to add some light and happiness to a year filled with hardships.

So, is starting to celebrate early a bad thing?

“I think people find putting up decorations in anticipation of the holiday even though it’s different it generates hope,” said Acadia Hospital Psychologist Dr. David Prescott.

”People throughout the pandemic and especially you know this time of year, we’re trying to generate some hope. I think that is one of the huge factors if you boil everything down to what gets you through a difficult time or depression and anxiety that goes with it is that you want to have some hope,” he said.

You can even win a prize this year for spreading the Christmas spirit.

Z107.3 will give $250 to the best decorated house and business this year.