I have a love/hate relationship with the Christmas holiday season. Although fond memories are evoked by the smell of pine and cinnamon, the holiday stress usually makes me want to skip Christmas and take a tropical vacation.
One of the setbacks I consistently face is trying to make time for errands with a schedule that is already stretched thin. I need some advance preparation but the challenge is that this year’s Christmas itinerary has changed several times already. Of course, this is normal and I anticipate several additional schedule changes will occur before the holiday arrives. Thanks to Murphy’s Law, most of these changes will be on Christmas Eve after the stores are closed.
Tis the season…
People tend to create their own drama during this season. There are the people who constantly whine about the holiday not going as planned and those who are so focused on what they don’t have that they fail to see the blessings in their own lives. What I don’t understand is how a season that is supposed to be about love and giving has become a time of stress. At time I am tempted to tell everyone that I am going away and not to include me in the Christmas plans. A quiet day with a turkey sandwich, hot cocoa, and a good book while my dogs lay at my feet would be enough to satisfy my holiday spirit.
The reality of it is that most of us won’t remember all of the dinner details a few years from now. What we will remember is how that day made us feel. For years I took a great amount of time each Christmas to plan on the perfect table setting, the perfect dinner, the perfect gifts, great activities, and an immaculate home. However, the people at my holiday table probably won't remember a tablecloth that I spent so much time searching for, that perfect turkey, or the cranberry sauce served in hollowed out orange peels with a hint of orange. However, people always remember the feelings, the laughter, the love, and the friendship that is shared on that day.
Christmas will come whether I am ready or not and the tone of the holiday depends on how I respond to it. I prefer some type of schedule so I can be prepared but the success of the holiday is actually about not having a rigid schedule. Sometimes the schedule needs to be renegotiated to meet the needs of the crowd. I have no problem celebrating Christmas on Christmas Eve if it is more convenient. Nor do I complain about serving duck instead of turkey. All I ask is for is just enough advance notice so I can have all of the ingredients handy because the true recipe for Christmas is mixing love and laughter together to create a feeling. The decorations are only a flavor enhancer similar to how salt enhances the flavors in a cake recipe. Tinsel makes things look nice but it isn’t the essence of the holiday itself.
As I grow older I have decided that instead of participating in an act of self induced stress, it is far better to break away from the expectations of the holiday season. Perhaps that will mean celebrating on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas day or serving dinner on disposable plates instead of my best dishes. I prefer to worry more about creating the perfect feeling and worry less about creating the perfect table. Christmas is all about how we respond to the season. This is supposed to be a season that is about love and giving to others. The objective should be to create a day that ends with a feeling that will warm the heart each time we revisit the memories of the day.
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