December 24 2023
Christmas is traditionally a time for family gatherings, beautiful table settings and gift exchanges with all the special people in your life.
Many people go through transitions that find themselves single, married, divorced, widowed or they are simply just independent and loving it.
Aside from divorced, I’ve been all of them.
Some phases of life are easier than others when it comes to celebrating the holidays.
The beautiful part of transitioning through these different phases is the personal growth that comes with it.
Sometimes we are in a place where we don't even want to venture out of the house for fear of hearing a song in the grocery store that brings us to tears. We stay home and isolate out of sheer self preservation.
Done that.
Sometimes we graduate to stepping out during the holidays and we are able to push through the music, but seeing all the families together shopping for gifts is enough to send us right back to the car and head home.
Done that.
Eventually we learn to create a holiday that celebrates ….us. Just us. We decorate our home because we love the lights. We make ourselves a holiday dinner for one….but its a step forward from not wanting to eat dinner at all.
Then…..after years of healing and working on ourselves……we plan a beautiful day, we toast to our blessings, and we make a special holiday dinner consisting of everything we love. We can smile at the families celebrating, and we can listen to the music because it brings back beautiful memories that we now treasure.
There are more people out there than you may realize….taking baby steps because their life has shifted to a place that requires reinvention.
Those baby steps come with a lot of mixed emotions and personal challenges.
But when you come out on the other side …it feels so good.
You realize you are stronger than you thought you were.
You are more resilient than you thought you were.
You have networked a group of friends who sincerely love you for everything you are…….and everything you are not.
And my favorite part……you always get what you want for Christmas because you picked everything out yourself…:)
Shop those Black Friday deals…and when those purchases arrive…wrap them up, and save them for Christmas to give to yourself.
Make a Christmas ham or turkey, vacuum seal the leftovers and put them in the freezer for later. Open that bottle wine that was given to you as a gift and raise a glass to all the blessings in your life.
There are more blessings than you may realize.
Say a prayer for the loved ones not sharing the day with you.
And when you turn off the Christmas lights at the end of the day…remember there was a time when you were grateful you just made it through the day.
But now…..you are simply excited at what the New Year will bring.
Celebrate your life……every day.
Because every day is a present you give yourself.
But thats just my opinion…:)
And Merry Christmas!
