Another Christmas Season Come and Gone…

The only ornament on our tree for Christmas. Here’s hoping that next year I can change it to, ‘Baby, it’s Hawaii outside!”.

It really is hard to believe that another holiday season is coming to a close. Different as it was, it was something to look forward to and soon, there will be that familiar lull as we embark on a new year and things tend to become colder, quieter and darker again before any thoughts of spring enter the realm of possibility. Here in Canada, at least. And, of course, it goes without saying that COVID-19 continues to loom about. One hopeful difference with respect to the virus from this past year to the coming one is that the new vaccines might help to pave the way to a brighter 2021. If nothing else, it’s a carrot for us all to hold onto in this somewhat dreary, unknown time of transition.

My family has traditionally kept our decorations and such up long past New Year’s to not only avoid that post-Christmas let down, but also to honour Ukrainian Christmas and New Year’s which follows the Julian calendar. While we haven’t usually put on a meal or anything since my Baba passed, we have sought out restaurants and such which have put on a celebratory feast— a good way to partake in the festivities without all of the work, really. One Christmas spread is enough to fuss over let alone two, though many people do it. Maybe not so much this time around, however.

As I reflect on this past year, it feels as though it and its unsettled nature has just blown on by, whilst also feeling like it was painfully slow-moving at times, namely our first period of lock-down I would say. Funny how one thing, time, can create such a paradox in perspective. The other night as we were readying ourselves for bed, turning off all of our Christmas-y type lights, my husband and I each commented on how it seemed as though we had just performed those same tasks an hour or so ago, yet a whole day had managed to pass. How does that happen? Age, we figure. Age seems to really quicken the minutes, days and years just as our parents said it would.

I’ve always said that the lead-up, the anticipation of something like Christmas is often better than the event itself because when ‘it’ is over, it’s over. There’s no going back. The good news is that the end of one celebration or event usually prompts one to think about what’s next: Next plans, next adventures, next dreams. We are still allowed to dream despite (likely in spite of) the pandemic, you know. I dream of travel again, as does my husband. We spend hours talking about where we’ve been, what we’ve done and what we would like yet to do. Hopefully, the latter part of 2021 will open up some possibilities. Until then, there is day-to-day life to live, to take part in, to show up for.

What and/or how do you plan to show up for 2021? Whatever or however that looks, I sincerely wish you and your families a safe, happy, healthy New Year filled with possibilities, togetherness, patience and love. Cheers to 2021! 🥂 IT has no idea what we have in store for it, nor do we maybe, but the important thing is that there is the potential for greatness and grandeur. Always. It’s what we make of it not what it makes of us—perhaps my personal, guiding principle for this coming year. 😊

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