This Christmas, make a little time for others, and a little time for yourself.
Some of you may have noticed that the last few days before the holiday can be a frantic, maddening rush to complete an ever-growing list of chores. Presents to buy! Baking to get into the oven! Cards to mail, family to call, travel plans to make, school concerts, parties, and on top of all that, many of us are working right up to the day or even on Christmas itself.
So when time does open up – perhaps after the gifts have been unwrapped and the paper cleared away – take advantage of what quiet comes.
Take time to appreciate those around you. For many it is our families, immediate and extended. For others, it is friends, found families that come together when biological family is far away or unavailable.
Any days off over the holiday season are a great time to reconnect with our loved ones, over a glass of wine or eggnog. It’s a time to catch up and reflect together on the year that’s almost passed.
Then take some time for yourself.
Throw yourself into a new book, go for a walk (weather permitting), lie on the couch with the dog and listen to music, maybe do absolutely nothing.
It can be very satisfying.
Humans are social – we need other people, and at this time of year, when the days are particularly dark and the nights very long, those we care for are like a warm blanket.
But the depths of winter is also a good time to be with yourself for a while. Consider your year as it recedes, and the new one fast approaching.
After the hustle and bustle of the holidays, make a Christmas for your family, and for yourself.
Happy holidays!
– M.C.