Ho-ho-hold on a minute...
We are fully, unavoidably in the holiday season, which brings joy to the tips of my elfin toes. I’m singing all the songs, making the crafts, and even putting eggnog in my coffee. I love it, but also recognize that we are doing all of these things (and shopping and cooking and planning and partying) on top of our already full lives. In the holiday crunch, we can hear ourselves promising to “make time” for yet another thing, whether it is work, fun, family or basic life administration.
And that’s dumb. Because literally, you cannot make time. Time is not a thing that can be made. There is no number of elements that you can combine or emails that you can send to create more time than the 24 hours we get each day.
My point: we can’t make time, so we must prioritize. We say “yes” to things, we say “no” to things, and we protect our brains and our bodies from total overload. It’s so obvious, and yet it is so hard! Maybe it’s FOMO (we only get this once a year!) - or its rarely discussed cousin FODO (fear of disappointing others) - but drawing healthy boundaries in the holiday season is the absolute worst.
Early this year I saw a meme that felt like a gut-punch at the time, but now acts more like a guiding light. Don’t stay where you are needed, go where you are loved. Well, shit. This time of year is supposed to be joyous, a celebration of life and love and community, a moment to give and appreciate what others have given you. So don’t let the obligation obliterate your holiday spirit. Give the considerate “no” when it’s the right call and go spread the joy where you are loved. I hope to see you there!