Let's not rush...

There are plenty of movies that I could watch over and over again.
“French Kiss” with Kevin Kline and Meg Ryan is one of them.
And one of my favorite lines from that flick comes when Ryan’s ranting to Kline’s character about her ex-fiancé’s new girlfriend.
The interloping woman is French, and her winning ways include saying “yes when she means no and no when she means yes.”
Ryan flips out and says that she can’t do that; that she has to be straightforward.
“Use the corresponding face for the corresponding emotion!” the frustrated, jilted Ryan seethes.
I feel her pain.
No, it has nothing to do with getting dumped by someone who has traveled to France and is swept off his feet by a pouty beauty.
It’s the whole “corresponding” issue that drives me over the edge.
It happens a lot, thanks to retailers and the way they look at the world.
Now that it’s October, and Halloween is approaching, followed by Thanksgiving in November, it’s happening again.
And this is always the most irritating occurrence.
Just when you finally get to enjoy the cooler days of autumn, feel the crunch of fallen leaves under foot, pick out the perfect pumpkin and await visits from candy-hungry ghosts and ghouls on Oct. 31, the stores must disrupt your reverie.
“Hey, it’s almost Christmas!” their displays scream.
Buy your decorations now! Look at this lifelike artificial Christmas tree! Don’t put off buying those presents; do it today!
It’s the same every year and I should just accept the inevitable.
But I love autumn.
The leaves are beautiful; the clouds take on a new persona; there’s a totally different aroma in the air; the heat and humidity are gone (well, for the most part).
Lawn-mowing is coming to an end and there’s something comforting about snuggling those delicate plants back into the house and spreading straw around those that can weather the winter.
Watching the deer and squirrels compete for the countless acorns that have fallen in our yard is an enjoyable pastime.
And autumn always spurs pleasant memories of high school football games and college activities.
So why can’t we just enjoy, say, even a month of this season without singing and wiggling Santas greeting us as we enter stores?
Why can’t we return to those halcyon days when the holiday shopping season kicked off the day after Thanksgiving, and not a moment sooner?
Why can’t we be allowed to savor the “corresponding activities for the corresponding season,” to paraphrase Meg Ryan?
Maybe we all should just pout.