Hughes: Mock me for listening to Christmas music early all you want

For me, the Christmas season begins Nov. 1.

Eggnog replaces apple cider, the cold weather doesn't seem to bother me as much and Christmas music starts to play on my radio.

I catch a lot of flack for listening to Christmas music so early, but there's a perfectly good reason for my love of the sounds of the season.

The Christmas season represents happiness. Waking up early as a kid and wandering downstairs to see presents under our tree, going to church with my grandfather on Christmas Eve and decorating our Christmas tree every year are some of my favorite memories as a child.

As the song says, there are parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting and caroling out in the snow, or, in my family's case, ski runs out in the snow.

But there was always one thing that tied these things together: Christmas music.

Whenever we opened our presents, we had our radio playing Christmas music. When my grandfather drove me to church on Christmas Eve, Christmas music would be playing in his car. When we were trimming the tree with care, the lyrical sounds of Frank Sinatra singing "The First Noel" would be echoing through the halls.

There were scary ghost stories and tales of the glory of Christmases long ago. It seemed like, every year, we would tell the same stories about past Christmases, and we would laugh every year like it was the first time we heard the story.

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The music reminds me of these good times and reminds me of being 8 years old, amazed by the power of this time of year we call Christmastime.

But the music does so much more than transport you back in time.

Most importantly, the music reminds me of my family. We did so much together, especially during Christmastime, be it trips together, watching "Christmas Vacation" on Thanksgiving or, yes, decorating our tree.

And there would always be Christmas music playing in the background whenever we were doing something as a family during this time of year.

Our hearts truly were glowing when our loved ones were near.

That's what this time of year is about. It's about family, giving and celebrating. Christmas music, with its innocent themes, runs heavily through this.

Now that my family moved away, and I live hours away from my closest relative, the music of the season holds a special place in my heart.

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Since this year will be the first year in my life I won't be with my family on Christmas (don't worry, though. Visiting my girlfriend's family in Vermont is a perfect substitute), Christmas music, the very thing that binds my childhood Christmas memories together, reminds me of the special times my family and I had.

Those memories my family and I made during Christmas are among the very best as a child. Forgive me for wanting to be transported back in time to a place where Christmas truly was magical by listening to the same songs we hear every year.

So mock me — and all of us who listen to Christmas music and start to celebrate the holiday early — all you want. In a world that seems to be teetering on chaos, we're just the ones who are trying to hold onto that Christmas magic for one more year.

On Twitter @hughesg19