It’s Okay Not To Feel Like Human Tinsel This Year, And 21 Other Magic Reminders.

Here are some reminders to get you through this unconventional season..

I have never been a big fan of the holiday season because the pressure to feel happy and festive often pushes me the opposite way. Things that are supposed to make me sparkly, like gift shopping, decorating, card-making often stress me out. There is a pressure that Christmas should be perfect and look a certain way. 

2020 has been quite the year. With a global pandemic, virtual learning, election stress, racial unrest, and social distancing– the holidays are bound to feel a little different this year. This holiday season, it’s okay to feel sad. It’s okay to be angry. It’s okay to be thankful, nervous, and down in equal measure. More importantly: it’s okay to be confused. It’s okay to not know how you feel.

This year has forced us to sit with uncertainty, and drop expectations– but it has also allowed us to find joy in unique and creative ways. Here are some reminders for trying to survive the 2020 holiday season 

1. No one’s Christmas looks as good as it does on Instagram. I can promise you, their cake doesn’t taste as good as it looks, and their tree is only decorated in the front. When you see the perfect family photo you aren’t seeing the fights that broke out right after. (Does anyone really like itchy matching PJ’s?)
2. The gift of health is the best holiday present. Staying home and keeping your family healthy is the best gift you could ever give them. (Trust me on this one!)
3. It’s okay to ignore your phone. If you don’t want to respond to your best friend’s “Merry Christmas Lovie!!!!” text– you don’t have to. They know you love them.
4. Christmas cards are just a highlight reel. No one looks that good on the beach in the winter, and no one’s year was that perfect. (It’s 2020 for crying out loud!)
5. It’s okay to put your tree up in October, and it’s cool if you leave it up until March. It’s also cool if you don’t decorate at all.
6. You don’t have to eat holiday foods to the point where you are sick. Pizza is always acceptable. 
7. Alternatively, you are allowed to eat foods knowing damn well they will leave you on the toilet for the next few days
8. Your packages probably won’t come in on time. It’s okay to be disappointed about it, and feel grateful for the mailmen and essential workers at the same time. You can hold both emotions.
9. You don’t need to rebrand yourself on January 1st. (You’re not Taylor Swift!).
10. Ignore the diet talk around food on Christmas and goals for New Years’. That extra cookie won’t make you gain five pounds, and you don’t need to try the newest workout challenge for January if you hate exercising. Also, you don’t need to spend 3 hours listening to your distant family members “keto journey.”
11. Dance parties are acceptable. That’s the reason why Christmas Trap Music exists.
12. You don’t need to attend a virtual party. If you are feeling “zoom burnout” tell your friends you can’t come. They don’t need an explanation.
13. You don’t need to kiss strangers on New Years’. (Especially during a global pandemic!). But seriously nothing is wrong with you for wanting personal space. 
14. It’s also not a requirement to get drunk on New Years’. Your choice not to drink bothers others more than it bothers you!
15. Take this from a pro: It’s okay to ring in the new year on the couch in your pajamas. You can also go to bed at 10 and sleep through midnight. 
16. Turn off your email notifications. You don’t need to do work. But at the same time, it’s okay to do work if you need to distract yourself.
17. You don’t need to listen to friends or family members talk about their irrational feelings towards the COVID-19 Vaccine. Feel free to shut them down.
18. It’s okay if you don’t make hot cocoa bombs. (Hot chocolate just tastes like weird flavored water anyways). But if you do make them, I totally want to try them. Send me pics.
19. There is nothing wrong with doing holiday-themed TikTok group dances by yourself. That’s what the “duet” feature is for.
20. You’re a star. Seriously, go put yourself on the top of the tree. (I did)
21. No one can hit the note in “All I Want for Christmas is You.” Don’t beat yourself up for not being the next Mariah Carrey.

It’s okay if your traditions look a little different this year. This is temporary. Lean into this space and channel the sadness to make new traditions. Step by step friends, we will get through this together.

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