The Art of Doing the Holidays Smaller (A Caregiver’s Reflection)
You may have no desire to do your best imitation of Martha Stewart—but that’s kind of the point. That's a good thing. The holidays come with expectations. And the worst ones? Not all of them come from other people. They’re the ones we place on ourselves. The ones that whisper, Look at me. I’ve got the best decorations. My cakes and pies are legendary. I serve the most delicious meal. My goodness, what a holiday to remember. And just like that, it becomes tradition. Did you notice the shift? How quickly the season moves from meaning to performance? Here’s the thing about caregiving: the holidays don’t stop for us, and we don’t stop for the holidays. The two just fold into each other—messy, imperfect—and somehow we’re still expected to stitch everything together into something that looks like joy. This year, I woke up and realized something. I don’t have the energy for the big version of Christmas. The one with matching pajamas. The good China. The kind o...