Just A Small Town Girl…

Eating, drinking, being merry: for a lot of us these are the things that epitomize the festive season. It is a truth universally acknowledged that the period starting from late December leading up until the beginning of January is the only time of the year that we’re allowed, and even encouraged, to abandon work and actually spend some quality time with our nearest and dearest— all the while wearing oversized Christmas jumpers, watching Home Alone and stuffing our faces with anything in sight! 😛 Running around like headless chickens buying Christmas presents, dropping off cards and chocolates to friends, and taking massive family selfies around overloaded dinner tables. However, that’s not necessarily the case for everyone out there this holiday season.

It can also be a very dark time for a lot of people: those who’ve undergone (or are undergoing) trauma, loss, or illness, or who aren’t surrounded by large loving families, may not necessarily be in the holiday spirit. In such cases this time of year often serves to magnify their pain as the world around them relentlessly demands that they be happy. It is Christmas after all, put all of your troubles aside for a week, don’t ruin it for everyone else, don’t be such a Grinch/Scrooge! That’s the general consensus around this time of year. No one wants to hear about sadness or problems: smiling faces only please, genuine or fake…either will do. This strong societal pressure to conform to the holiday spirit is suffocating at best when you’re not doing too good. I know this because I’ve been in that position before, most of us have/will at some point in our lives, and it sucks.

So if you’re one of the lucky ones this year with little/nothing major to complain about, please spare a thought for those who aren’t doing as well as you, be mindful of how they may be feeling and recognize how truly blessed you are. I know that tomorrow night when I’m surrounded by my family and friends counting down till midnight and the start of a new year, I’ll be sure to take a minute to appreciate just how genuinely grateful I am. And how the little things that I take for granted every year may not actually be so little.

Happy new year everybody, wishing each and every one of you nothing but great health and prosperity. 😀