How I Fell Back In Love With Christmas (and how you can, too)

How I Fell Back In Love With Christmas | www.nurturedmama.net

For many years of my life I have dreaded the month of December.

When I was still working at Apple, before the MacWorld convention in January was cancelled, it was the month of finishing every project, which meant long hours and high stress. I rarely had time to plan ahead for gifts and finding time to make the gifts I wanted to make was impossible. Each year found me shopping last minute and feeling cranky and unsatisfied. Giving that way felt empty.

Throughout the month I would find myself eating too much, drinking too much, and never sleeping near enough. I'd feel bloated, cold, slow and exhausted. By the time the Christmas finally arrived I mostly just wanted to sleep. I couldn't muster the energy to be excited about holiday gatherings and often found myself bickering with family I hadn't seen in months over the ways we each felt let down instead of enjoying their company. I missed the people I couldn't be with and didn't enjoy the company of the ones I was with.

I hated Christmas. I hated December. And then one year I'd had enough of feeling this way and decided to make some changes.

I scaled back my gift list to my closest family and dearest local friends. I made a list of things I really wanted to give them, some of them made by me, some of them handmade by others, some of them entirely consumable. I declined most of the party invitations I received and spent more time curled up in front of my own fireplace, resting and enjoying my few but carefully chosen decorations. I drew boundaries around my time and energy and I held them. I was still tired on Christmas morning, but it was so much better than the year before that I knew I was on to something.

Each year since then has improved and now I can tentatively say I love Christmas again.If any part of this story - the exhaustion, the frustration, the feeling of dissatisfaction - feels familiar to you and you want a change, then I'd like to invite you to sign up to receive the Holiday Nurture letters.