Tag: day after Christmas

Exhale

Image result for quotes about exhaling

Today is a day to just exhale. Whether your Christmas was busy, and crazy and fun, or solitary and sad, or a little bit of both, exhale. Let it go. Whether Christmas zipped by and you wonder where it went, or whether it crawled by, and you just wondered when it was ever going to be over, exhale. Just be. Whether you loaded Christmas with a bunch of expectations or you went into it with an observant curiosity, just relax. Exhale. Whatever you are feeling right now – sad and disappointed that Christmas is over for another year, relieved and joyous that Christmas is over for another year, or a little bit of both, that’s okay. Observe the feelings and then set them free. Exhale. You are enough. You are lovely. You just experienced another big holiday season and whatever that does to you – energizes you, depletes you, inspires you, depresses you, fills your heart, frustrates your heart, puts you in a fog of memories and quietness, or puts you into action of cleaning and orderliness, it’s all okay. It’s all good. Exhale. Just breathe. Just be.

Back to Reality

So, Christmas is over for another year. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly everything gets back to “normal.” I woke up this morning and my mind went instantly to the “to do” list. In some ways, this feels good. A lot of the distractions are over and the focus can be on the upcoming new year, but it is always strange to have an event that is thought of and planned for, for about a month ahead of time, to all of the sudden, just be over. I guess this is when the dreaded “let down” happens for a lot of people. I’ve honestly never gotten that feeling too badly. I usually have reached my saturation point with all of the “out of the ordinary” – eating, drinking, parties, get-togethers, red and green decorations, extra stuff to sort and to put away, etc. I start to really crave and look forward to “the ordinary”. I’ve said it before, but I do think that it is an added blessing of the holidays, to start getting a true appreciation and desire for your own every day life. Maybe that’s part of the design of the holiday season.

“At some point, you gotta let go, and sit still and allow contentment to come to you.” – Elizabeth Gilbert

“In our daily lives, we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but the gratefulness that makes us happy.” – Albert Clarke