I know it’s only October 1, but let’s look ahead to the holiday season for just a minute.
The weeks from Thanksgiving through the end of the year can be challenging, exciting, exhausting, fun, full of memories or full of grief.
Think about your current situation and then consider what you need or want for this holiday season.
Last year at this time, I found myself really dreading the holidays. During Christmas the year before (2021), it became apparent that my daughter was in an abusive marriage. It all came to light in the days right before Christmas and then on that day, it was on display for everyone to see.
So last year, I just wanted to avoid Christmas altogether, but that didn’t seem like an option.
Instead, I gave myself the gift of one month of Better Help therapy sessions. I wanted to arm myself with some tools to get through the season.
I decided not to give gifts to everyone. We did a family gift exchange, but I took a year off of shopping for everyone individually.
I decided not to decorate the house for Christmas. That decision was spurred in part by the fact that our hot water heater leaked and ruined the flooring, so in December we had to have all the flooring in the house replaced.
We also decided to go away for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We rented a cabin in Gatlinburg and had a nice time with our four kids and my parents.
This year, we’re in a different place. We will celebrate at home with decorations and gifts. We’ll honor past traditions and I also want to bring in new things too.
This week’s flourish action: Look ahead to your holiday season and think through what you need. Make a plan now.
Maybe you want to ramp up the celebration or maybe this is a year you pull a “Christmas with the Kranks” move and cancel the whole thing.
If you’re really dreading the season, consider getting therapy for a while. I found it to be very helpful to me.
Whatever you need to do, make your plan now.