This is not going to be your traditional Thanksgiving message. Instead, I am going to share my personal feelings about this time of year and buck the trend to stuff your inbox with “deals of the day” just so I can make a buck or two.
Thanksgiving and this time of year, in general, is not an easy one for me. There are many reasons that lead me to dread the frantic effort to bring people that may not like each other together, prepare meals that give you indigestion and make you feel ill, and, of course, rack up debt by purchasing gifts that may or may not be welcome.
For me, it is all too much. That doesn’t mean that I am not thankful for many things, but rather that I make Thanksgiving and the holidays more personal, with a private bucket list of things to do and to be grateful for.
For that reason, I tend to hunker down on this day and spend time on this day doing things I love and to heck with obligation and tradition. But that is just me. Perhaps your circumstances are different.
Does this make me antisocial? Perhaps, but read on.
Thanksgiving Up Front and Personal
This year I will be spending the early part of the day hanging out at home and doing what I call nesting. Not chores, mind you but doing little things around the house that I enjoy. Usually, that involves playing with my essential oils aka making up diffuser blends or salves, taking a hike with my dog, or listening to an audiobook while doing some adult coloring. It may even involve playing a round of Mexican Train with my husband.
Later in the afternoon, I will travel to an Arizona town about sixty miles away to visit longtime friends from the days when we boated together in the waters of Puget Sound and San Juan Island. Although we were invited to share their Thanksgiving dinner, we already had tickets for a dinner show where we will be entertained with one of the best darn musical variety shows on the planet.
I plan to call my family who is congregating in Denver. It is important that I let them know I am thinking about them and to thank them for putting up with their crazy prepper sister and aunt. They are the best.
This is going to be a joyful day, filled with quiet pursuits, friends that mean something to me, and family members I care about.
How Are You Spending the Holidays?
If you are someone that is caught up with doing traditional things in a joyful way, I give you a tip of my hat.
But if the holidays are stressful, why not be unconventional and do what I have done and make this last part of the year something to look forward to and not to dread? There is nothing wrong doing a timeout, something I call “me time”, and doing what you want to do instead of what society tells you to do.
Of course, if you love cooking and shopping, more power to you. Keep on doing so with my blessing. But if not, create a bucket list of ways you would prefer to spend your time and start plucking them off your list, one at a time.
Read: Living Life: Embracing the Benefits of Me Time
Summing It All Up
The external pressure to celebrate, consume, and spend money this time of year is immense. Taking control and deciding just how much or how little you want to participate will go a long way to mitigating those pressures.
At the end of the day, this should be a happy time.
And with that, I wish you and your loved ones a joyous, and strategic Thanksgiving. You are appreciated more than you know.
Yours for a Joyful Life,
Gaye
Strategic Haul
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My husband and I have been unconventional about our holidays for decades and Thanksgiving got more that way last year when I went vegetarian-mostly-vegan early in November. I like this way of eating, though I do fudge a little. At a Thanksgiving potluck earlier this week, I had some turkey but here at home, no need, we will do a variety of yummy veggie dishes. That’s fine with hubby.
Gift-giving isn’t much of a thing for us, but we do send out a short holiday email in December, and it links to a private webpage with news of our year and lots of photos. This has enabled us to keep in touch with friends in the various places we’ve lived.
I’m not into obligatory holidays so today I will take the time to review my preps and make a list of items I still need. I will wash the kitchen floor and do some other chores that need done. Sounds awful doesn’t it? But at the end of the day I will feel more organized and have a sense of accomplishment that makes me happy and calm.
I’m with you, Gaye. After I escaped the chamber of horrors I grew up in, I began to reinvent holidays (and every other aspect of life) to suit myself. Now I spend them mostly at home, doing exactly as I please. I may or may not eat turkey and stuffing, or share a meal with someone on Thanksgiving if I feel like it. For Christmas I display a little tree with miniature decorations on it, because it was made for me by a good friend, now deceased, and it reminds me of our friendship. These things are much more meaningful to me than the empty frenetic acquisitiveness that literally makes me sick to my stomach this time of year. I wish everyone could experience as much peace as I do this season. I’m very glad you have found your peace too. Namaste.
I did my best to keep holidays ‘traditional’ when the kids were young, and carried that into their young adulthood. We are empty nesters now, and the kids have their own lives and don’t live close. I worked today, and DH and I had our own version of ‘traditional’ Thanksgiving meal after I came home. I love to cook, and love my leftovers, so not cooking is not an option, LOL! But even the cooking has been downsized (not an easy thing for the woman used to cooking for an army).And ‘Black Friday’? Not for me, never was. I think how we deal with holidays reflects the seasons of our lives, and changing ‘tradition’ is just a part of that.