Shake Up Your Holiday
Here in Homer, traffic’s pretty quiet this holiday season. In fact, when driving through our main business district, we can all easily get a left-hand turn. No streams of RVs making their way to the spit or rental cars heading to the art galleries or visitors piling into our two grocery stores.
That’s summer. And during that season, we skillful errand runners know that in Homer you must plan your stops on the business grid using right-hand turns. Only.
Or you may be waiting at the intersection . . . until September.
It Got Me Thinking
In most of life, it’s refreshing to take a left hand turn. As in. Do Something Different.
On the flipside. We mammals are adhered to our habits and routines. They provide a modicum of certainty and ease. Ahhh.
Of course, the holidays are no different. Most of us have crafted what we need to do. Gifts to purchase. Events to attend. Specialties to bake. Concoctions to brew. Places to travel. Hats to knit. Parties to host. Traditions to honor.
How your neurobiology adores this. Well. OK. Until it doesn’t. Until you rev up into the stratosphere trying to check off everything on the to-do list while repairing the washing machine that broke, taking on that bulging workload on your desk, caring for your influenza-laced child, or shoveling your home and office walkways as if you are living in a snowglobe.
Or until you melt down into a funk thinking the holidays are bunk, your family never liked you, Netflix Christmas movies suck, and there will never be enough spiked wassail to get you through to New Year’s.
Do Something Different
This holiday season take a breath. Just one deep cleansing breath. OK, two. And do something different than your usual holiday gig.
The very best gift you can give yourself or anyone closeby is inclining toward your calm, alert, kindred, and engaged place. That inner CAKE place.
What do you need to do to move there? Or stay there? What recipe do you need for that type of internal CAKE?
The delight of that CAKE? Everyone will like you more. Most importantly, you. You will enjoy what you’re doing. You will give yourself more goodwill. You’ll blow off two more batches of rugelach. You’ll skip those extra presents.You’ll be dancing to James Brown’s Soulful Christmas. And life — it will just taste more delicious.
So Shake Up your Holiday
As mammals, we love to be be with true others. These are your people that accept, embrace, and understand your quirky, authentic, and human self. And we do the same for them. It’s your tribe.
And there’s nothing sweeter during the holidays than relishing the company of people you love.
It’s even sweeter than rugelach.
May your holiday season be your own wonderful creation.
Warm blessings to all.
Susie