Dear First name / sweet friend
Happy holidays to you and your family.
December is here. This year, to me, it feels like it's been a very long year.
Ha! That might be an understatement…who is there with me?!
There is hope around the corner and I'm welcoming the end of this heavy year, looking forward to future healing and reflection for all of us collectively.
The holiday season looks different this year, there is no doubt about that. Today, I reposted a piece called “How To Stay Grounded This Holiday Season” - I wrote this piece last year, around this time, suggesting grounding for an entirely different reason - I had in mind all of the hustle and bustle of the holidays season, the whirlwind of activities and parties and gatherings that it's so easy to get caught up in and have take over too much. Man wouldn't that feel like a good thing now? It's amazing how quickly things can change. I have so much appreciation for the busyness of the holidays last year!
I decided to repost this piece today, because I think that it still rings true, for different reasons this year.
This time of year can be a whirlwind, joyful, exciting AND it can be bittersweet and painful for some of us. There is so much emotion that comes with it, the good and the difficult. All of that is still happening this year AND we have the added heaviness of what 2020 has already delivered. Many of us are trying to make it feel normal for our little ones. It's a lot. So much.
I urge you this year to get really thoughtful about the things that really matter to you around this time of year. Get creative. And make it simple. If your tradition surrounds family events and you are not gathering, plan an alternative way to connect and maybe even start a new tradition. If some of your typical traditions aren't able to happen in the same way this year…rethink them and adjust. It's so important, this year more than ever, that we make the time for what is important to us.
I urge you this year to consider people in need more than ever. There are so many people struggling in ways that we can't even imagine, they would give anything to face some of the “struggles” I mentioned above. There are so many ways that we can help, even if monetary assistance isn't an option. Maybe it becomes a new tradition.
I hope that this piece, linked below, reminds you to slow things down and enjoy the sweetness this season, even though this holiday looks much different and feels much different. One day at a time, one step in front of the other with deep breaths - although our memories might look quite different, pick and choose what is important and let your heart lead the way.
