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I wish I was one of those people who woke up on the day after Thanksgiving (or, honestly, even December 1) ready to jump into the holiday spirit with both feet.
For years, I made the jump, not totally feeling it but feeling like I should. I gave a little run, jumped high in the air, grabbed both my knees to my chest on the way down and cannonballed into the holidays.
But once the splash settled and the last ripple in the water disappeared, I was left feeling cold and shaking a bit from the shock. Overwhelmed by commitments and plans. The holidays began to feel like one long to-do list.
You don’t find spirit in a to-do list.
So now, we go slow in my house. Dipping toe by tiny toe into the tinsel and glitter. We savor each holiday moment and make the spirit last.
We decorate slowly, all month long. Stringing some garland or hanging a stocking when the mood strikes us. The act of adding each piece of decor is a mini celebration all it’s own. Holiday spirit is the slow transformation of our home from the everyday to a winter wonderland.
We don’t bake cookies in a marathon weekend of sprinkles and frosting. We whip up a few chocolate chip here, a couple of gingerbread men there, filling our house with the scents of cinnamon and nutmeg on a whim. Holiday spirit is Bing Crosby serenading your dance from the mixer to the oven and back again.
All season long, we simply live the holidays.
Because, for us, the holidays are not about one single thing. Not just one day. Not one gift or one event or even one shot at making a memory. Holiday spirit is a magic that cannot be contained. It’s constant memory making.
It’s the magic of us, together as a family, welcoming the spirit into our hearts bit by bit and not letting go.
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I was selected for this opportunity as a member of Clever Girls Collective, and the content and opinions expressed here are all my own.