Embrace the mess
Give yourself grace this holiday season + the days start getting longer next week!
This week we discuss the holiday season, the upcoming winter solstice and share a milestone. If you’re not yet a subscriber, you can become one here:
Embrace the mess
Embrace the mess, she said. It was earlier this year and applies equally well now.
If you’re like me, you may like to have a clean house, feel caught up, and be present.
As we reach the midpoint of December, things can start to feel a little overwhelming.
The house is messy. It’s still not fully decorated. Outside, some of the new lights we purchased just last year have decided to quit working (they really don’t make things like they used to) so there’s likely a search around town for a replacement string of lights.
There are gifts to wrap, gifts to buy — and, for a few, still gift ideas to find. And stockings!
There are holiday cards to finish writing and mail. Potentially a stop at the post office if you need more stamps or to mail some gifts.
There are holiday parties to get ready for. Perhaps a work-related one or two. Maybe you’re even hosting one.
Kids coming home from school. Seeing friends. Making cookies. Watching holiday movies. Ice skating. Getting pictures with Santa.
If you travel for work, there’s that final business trip of the year. Realizing that there are only two weeks left this year and wondering “how am I going to get all this stuff done?”
If you’re traveling during the holidays, there’s packing, getting the car ready or needing to arrive extra early at the airport. Or perhaps you have family staying with you. Cleaning house. Making up a guest bed.
Then there is the holiday itself, whatever you celebrate. The meal, the traditions that are meaningful to you.
Maybe you’re planning a vacation getaway after the holidays — somewhere snowy or someplace sunny.
Are you feeling a little overwhelmed? It’s okay. It can feel like a lot.
Give yourself — and those around you — grace.
We are all human. Take care of yourself. Do what needs to be done. Be okay adjusting your plans. Spend time with those that matter to you. Be present.
Solstice soon
The days continue to get shorter. It get darker earlier and earlier. The shortest day of the year is next week: the winter solstice is Thursday, December 21. I know someone who hosts a solstice party. I never have but — as someone who is solar-powered — I definitely acknowledge this day each year. How about you?
As Robert Lea writes for Space:
The Winter Solstice, or the December Solstice, is the point at which the path of the sun in the sky is farthest south. At the Winter Solstice, the sun travels the shortest path through the sky resulting in the day of the year with the least sunlight and therefore, the longest night.
In the lead-up to the Winter Solstice, the days become shorter and shorter, then on the evening of the solstice — in the Northern Hemisphere occurs annually on the 21st or 22nd of December — winter begins, according to a NASA resource. From then onwards the days become increasingly long leading up to the Summer Solstice, or the June Solstice, and the longest day of the year.
100
Finally, I shared a note in a postscript to last week’s issue and guess what? You did it. Thank you!
I’m pleased to say we’ve grown to 102 subscribers in the past week. If you’re new here, welcome! I’m so glad to have you join us. I’d love to meet you and hear what you’re interested in as I plan 2024 so feel free to send me an email or comment below.
Substack shared this with me a few days ago. It’s cute, right?
You may be curious to learn where your fellow readers hail from. It’s an increasingly diverse community — from 23 US states and 22 countries:
When I started
in January 2023, I never imagined that I would have readers in over 11%1 of the countries of the world less than a year later. I’m so encouraged and grateful for our growing global community. Thank you, again, for being part of it.As we look towards the new year, I welcome hearing from you and what you’d like to read and learn more about.
Be well,
-Bryce
Congratulations, Bryce! Wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday season, and a fabulous 2024. xo