When taking a trip to a major retail store in Wadesboro a few days before Christmas, one would probably expect to find the store bustling with last-minute shoppers and holiday tunes playing over the loudspeakers. What you would not expect is to find employees ripping down the wrapping paper decorating the register lights, removing Christmas trees and packing them up for storage.

A sign when you enter the store counts down the days until Christmas so you might want to double-check that you read correctly and didn’t, in fact, sleep through the big day. Nope. The sign confirms that Christmas is still a few days away. So why are employees de-Christmasing the store?

Well, to get ready for Easter, of course. This makes perfect sense, considering that the Christmas decorations were up while kids were still trick-or-treating.

The marketing machine of major retailers may have finally taken things too far. The idea of taking down Christmas decorations days before the holiday itself is absurd. It’s as if the holiday has lost all meaning.

The Christmas season is about giving to others, celebrating the goodness in others. How are last-minute shoppers supposed to feel the holiday spirit when there are Easter bunnies decorating the store instead of Santas? How are employees supposed to feel holiday cheer when all signs of Christmas have been stripped?

By the time this paper is delivered, Christmas will have passed. Here’s hoping other retailers wait until at least today to remove their holiday decorations.