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October 24, 2021 6 min read
It’s officially Fall, y’all! The first cold front (well, a cool front when you’re in Texas) has come through. I’ve even seen some people in sweaters, but I don’t know how they manage to keep them on all day. Right now, Texas weather fluctuates between the 60s in the mornings and 90s in the afternoon…it’s why layering was invented!
Halloween decorations are going up, pumpkin spice EVERYTHING is out and about, and by this time of year, I’m usually in full-on Christmas mode, but I haven’t made it there, yet. I’m working on it, but I could use your help.
You see, the world seems like a vary heavy place these days. In the last couple of months, among my friends and family, that includes members of our Christmas Pickle VIPs family, there’s been more tragedy than I care to think about. I’ve had friends lose loved ones to COVID…I personally know more people who have passed from COVID in 2021 than in 2020, and I just knew it would be over and done by the time we got to Fall this year. I have a friend whose grandson lost members of his Marine Unit in the explosion at the Kabul Airport. Still another dear friend is battling a cancer resurgence and infections which are a direct result of what the doctors are doing to fight the cancer. There’s more on the list, but I think you get the idea…while my immediate family is doing well, many people I love like family have endured unfair hardships the last few months, and my heart goes out to them.
We launched www.ChristmasPickleTX.com in 2020 as a way to find JOY and stay connected to everyone even while socially distancing, and it worked! We reconnected with old friends and made new ones and had a blast talking Christmas from July on. But, this year, we’re behind. Life is much more hectic than at this time last year. While I’m grateful for our children being back in school and resuming their extracurricular activities, I miss the calm and quiet that 2020 provided in many ways even amongst the chaos of the unknown. Life has returned to normal in many ways, but the pandemic continues to cloak the world in a shroud of uncertainty. That uncertainty and the unknown that lies around the corner seems to be stealing JOY from many of us this year, so how do we combat it?!?
It’s something Whitney and I have been discussing the last few weeks, and I really didn’t have any insight to share until recently. My husband was supposed to be out-of-town one day, but because circumstances beyond his control changed, he didn’t end up being gone. So, he worked Saturday morning, and then he and I were able to run errands together. It was a simple day. We picked up feed for all the farm animals, had lunch together in a sit-down restaurant…no drive-through lines, and we went grocery shopping together…just the two of us. We talked about it, and we couldn’t remember the last time we had a day like that…just the two of us.
It was a nice reminder that when we actually have time to spend together, we still really enjoy each other! If he hadn’t ended up at home, I probably never would have left the house, and I think I needed to be out and about. The next several weekends were busy at shock shows, and when I see weeks like that coming, I have a tendency to hunker down and soak up time at home as much as possible, but laundry, housekeeping and chores don’t generally do much good for my mood! Can anyone relate?
It was in the simple act of spending a few uninterrupted hours with my husband that I remembered there are little things I can do to lift my spirits and find my Christmas JOY. So, I thought I’d share some ideas with you in hopes they might make their way to someone else trying to muster up some extra JOY, but also in hopes that you’ll share your ideas with me, too, and that way, we can help each other through the heavy times.
So, what did I miss? How do you find your JOY when the world is weighing you down? I’d love to hear from you, so please comment on this blog to share your ideas with your fellow Christmas Pickle family members or email me at ChristmaspickleTX@gmail.com if you prefer to share your thoughts in private. Be sure to join our Christmas Pickle VIPs group on Facebook to follow along this holiday season. We’re Christmas Enthusiasts sharing our JOY and lifting each other up…and sometimes we mix in a little retail therapy!!
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