You’re doing good work. You’ll never be perfect. You are amazing just as you are. You are building something worthwhile. My writing brain sang these words as I ran home from the office tonight, to wrap my kids up in big mommy hugs. They are the words I would write, in a holiday note, to every one of the teens I work with who feels unloved.
It is the holiday season, and things start whirling faster. There is an intoxicating chaos, and it’s hard not to be pulled into the vortex. It’s sensory and family, love and hope and expectation, and ritual and routine. It’s too much and not enough and the past played out over today. It’s loved ones and ones who are no longer here and a hard swallow brought on by the twinkle. It’s celebration and remembrance, and hugs and loneliness.
It’s a delicate time, and the disequilibrium that follows is rough – unless you are a skilled vortex rider. P.S. If you are thinking to yourself right now, “what the hell is she talking about?” you might be a skilled vortex rider. For the rest of us, it’s important to work a little, and to capture the love and joy, and let the rest float on.
So, call up the things you’ve loved about holidays past; late night walks in the snow and neighborhood lights. Feel these moments if you can. But don’t feel you need to recreate them every year. These are truly precious gems, and there will be more, and they will be just as right. Whatever you do over the holiday, don’t be confined by the past. Shine love and kindness on the season, polish the memories you have, and enjoy the twinkle.
