My Soul Is Tired and My Calendar Smells Like Peppermint Bark Already

My soul is tired and my calendar smells like peppermint bark already. Funny, not funny, I know! It turned November, just as I got my fall decorations neatly placed, and now I’m penciling in dates for holiday school programs and when my sister will be in town for Christmas. Wait, how did we get here so quickly? Didn’t the kids just go back to school after summer break? Does time literally go by faster as we get older?

Collectively, these events have gotten my nervous system on overdrive, and I know if I don’t step in now, the downward spiral of overwhelm that turns into taking the “fun” out of family and friend events as we travel through the holidays will ensue.

So what’s a girl to do??

The invisible tension of the micro moments:

• the 9 unread texts

• the half-wrapped Amazon boxes

• the fridge chaos

• the random appointment you forgot you scheduled in September

Those tiny things drain more than the big life issues.

The way people say “busy” like a badge:

but under it there’s often:

• panic

• resentment

• guilt for wanting out

This phenomenon of “fake rest”

• scrolling

• bingeing one more episode

versus real rest:

• breathing

• 5 minutes of stillness

• actually slowing down

Your nervous system…not productivity

people think “I need better time management”

but really they need:

• downshifts

• parasympathetic cues

• moments where nothing is demanded of them

Simple little “pattern interrupts”

not big life overhauls

• 90 seconds of breathing before you get out of the car

• stirring your coffee slower

• letting a task be “good enough” instead of perfect

Here’s your permission slip

to not be the hero of everyone’s holiday experience

So this year… I’m not waiting until December panic mode to shift something.

I’m entering November with hopeful energy — enough time and patience to choose gifts with care, to actually enjoy the moments instead of rushing through them, and to wake up on Christmas morning feeling present and intentional, with a pat on the back for a job well done.

One may wonder how, in these early days of November, we can create this calm and balance I suggest. It is in the micro decisions we make, one day at a time. It is being intentional in our actions. It is choosing self care, because when we take care of ourselves, we are better at taking care of others, and make clearer-minded decisions in our days.

In an effort of knowing what lies ahead, and that one small goal that feels achievable leads to another, I will lay one out there that begins the foundation of what’s ahead over the next couple of months for me.

I’m choosing one night a week where nothing is scheduled, even if it feels ‘wasteful. The day of the week may change, but I want purposeful space to exist during a time when there feels like I can barely keep my head above water and breathe. When I think of ways of spending these wide-open evenings, it would feel nice to put our phones away, cook dinner together — and have a game night or movie afterwards. A night of self care — an everything shower, warm tea, a cozy blanket and a book. A walk around town looking at Christmas lights with a friend. Whatever the “ah” moment feels like in the present moment, is the one I’ll take. I hope you do the same.

I choose the pace now — chaos is no longer my default holiday aesthetic.