Halloween, Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa, New Year’s Eve
“Winter, a lingering season, is a time to gather golden moments, embark on a sentimental journey, and enjoy every idle hour.”
John Boswell
I love the Holiday season, and am hopeful about THIS upcoming season, which will be the first season since the rollout of the vaccine for COVID-19.
I remember my own childhood when, growing up in the Midwest, seasons were actually exciting, with that wonderful smell of Fall, with the leaves changing color, a delightful frost in the air in the mornings, fires in fireplaces, hot chocolate, apple cider, Halloween costumes, trick or treating, and Halloween Candy. And then came Thanksgiving, with turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, and cranberries. Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, with Santa Claus, hoping for a White Christmas, waking up even before the sun was up, Christmas trees, lights, garland around the fireplace, lots of red and green candles, and more turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, sweet potatoes, pumpkin pie, and cranberries. New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day was staying up late, getting up early again, ham, scalloped potatoes, green vegetables, and Aspic Jelly. It was also the day when the Christmas decorations came down in the Campbell family.
This doesn’t even cover the impact of the media on the Holiday Season: movies like “It’s a Wonderful Life, White Christmas, A Miracle on 34th Street, Holiday Inn, A Christmas Carol, and A Christmas Story;” television shows like “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, A Charlie Brown Christmas, Frosty the Snowman, and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”
Now I know I’m dating myself, as I’ve essentially only listed movies and television from my childhood, but I had to limit myself somewhere.
And now, we have more holidays to celebrate and/or commemorate, such as Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and others I’m sure I’m not listing.
The point that I’m trying to make is that we have been told by television, movies, social media, music, and even other people, that the Holiday Season is a wonderful time for everyone, and that we should be our happiest, our merriest, our most generous, our most grateful, etc., but, surprise – WE’RE NOT.
My magical holiday season ended at age 12, when a series of family tragedies and circumstances had a strong, negative impact on my family.
So I would urge all of us to just be kind to others, to ourselves, and make that extra effort to give the greatest gift, which is the gift of ourselves.
I would also encourage you to be consistent with scheduling therapy sessions during the upcoming weeks and months, as these days are often when having someone to talk to is the MOST important thing!
Below, I’m including my work schedule for the 2021 Holiday Season, which reflects my scheduled time off.
Leslie’s Holiday Schedule
November 12, 2021
Thanksgiving Week, November 22, 2021 – November 26, 2021
Christmas Eve, December 24, 2021
Fourth Quarter Holiday, December 27, 2021 – December 31, 2021
“Let’s all take a moment to recognize the true heroes of the season – elastic waistbands.”