happy Christmas!
celebrating the silver linings of #covidseason
The memes about how awful 2020 has been have rescued many a rough day this year, and I’m as likely as the next person to talk about what a dumpster fire this year has been.
And.
My family is so fortunate, and because I have learned the value of naming things, I am feeling very grateful this Christmas week for all of the “Covid silver linings,” as I’ve been calling them. I don’t know what things might look like on the other side of this, but I do know that it is always beneficial to reflect and seek out the beauty even - especially - in the midst of the hard. So I thought I would share my list of #covidsilverlinings, and I would love to hear some of yours in the comments below or just by replying to this email. Sharing our stuff fosters connection, and if 2020 has taught me anything, it is that we are societally suffering from a lack of connection.
Sara’s #covidsilverlinings, in no particular order:
Despite all four of us contracting Covid in November, we made it through relatively unscathed after a rough few weeks of recovery. I would have far preferred that we never contracted Covid, but I’m grateful regardless. It was also a good reminder of how important it is that we prioritize our health and well-being - pandemic or not.
Grant’s and my jobs have been secure and our employers have been very supportive throughout 2020. At a time when so many people have lost their jobs, dreams, homes, and worse, we daily recognize how massively fortunate we have been to not have to stress about jobs or mortgage payments this year.
We’ve been just plain together far more than ever this year - and we all still really like each other. In fact, we all have found that we prefer our quieter, closer to home schedule. We won’t be rushing back to a full calendar or tons of activities after this is over.
Getting outside wayyy more than usual. At times during Covid season, my daily walk (or three) has quite literally saved my sanity. I have loved a more flexible schedule that has allowed me to 1) notice how often during the day I need some time and movement outside and 2) be able to actually get outside - even if only five minutes - and feel better immediately.
I have let go of lots of personal care type things since March: wearing makeup, a bra, blow drying my hair, to name a few. I have loved not spending my time or sacrificing my comfort on that kind of stuff this year, and I don’t plan on going back to many of those things unless I genuinely want to versus I feel like it is expected.
Despite my disappointment (to put it lightly) from most of our leaders this year, 2020 has been a constant reminder of the beauty of humanity: the healthcare workers who continue to show up and care for us despite exhaustion and leadership failures, the essential workers stocking shelves and delivering our stuff day in and day out, the creativity of people that make memes that keep us laughing, the countless big and small kindnesses I’ve heard about and experienced this year.
Several individual friends and family members who prioritized connection this year, despite it being weirder or harder than usual. 2020 has been clarifying in terms of who and what is worth spending my time and energy on, and that is helpful, even if it might hurt in the interim. I have repeatedly been reminded of that Maya Angelou quote this year: “when people show you who they are, believe them the first time.” Which leads nicely into the next one…
I saw the post below on Instagram last week, and I can’t stop thinking about it. This year woke me up to a lot of things about our country, about individual people in our lives, and about the larger systems in play. Much of that waking up was painful or at the least uncomfortable, but, in the end, I think it is better to know what we’re up against and how best to protect our energy accordingly.
Just raves this week
👍Holiday cards. I love holiday cards. I don’t mind in the least how you feel about holiday cards or whether or not you do them (you do you!). I just like creating them, and I love receiving them. Even in the social media age, I love the ritual of sending and receiving cards to each other every Christmas.
👍End of the year lists. I just love a good list. Please send me your favorites, and I will voraciously read them - but also collect them in one spot for next week’s newsletter.
👍Snow Angels has always been one of my favorite winter albums (I listen to it way past Christmas), but its authentic, melancholy mood is especially appropriate for this weird Covid Christmas season we find ourselves in.
👍Poetry. Winter puts me in the mood for poetry, moreso the older I get. Here are some that have lingered with me this winter solstice and Christmas week: John Blase’s “Walk Straight,” David Whyte’s “Sweet Darkness,” Wendell’s “Remembering That It Happened Once…” (of course), and Jan Richardson’s How The Light Comes.
Stuff worth sharing this week
#christmasseason lasts through Epiphany and doesn’t even start according to the church calendar until today, so stretch out the celebrating through January 6th. We don’t take down any decorations until then. Here are some other ideas if you’re wanting to celebrate the Twelve Days of Christmas:
The Art of Simple has some fun ideas.
A Sacred Journey has some more “Christiany” ideas, breaking down each day with a corresponding word that corresponds with the twelve days.
If you haven’t watched Jingle Jangle yet, our whole family loved it. We like to keep the Christmas movie watching going until Epiphany and try to rotate through different holiday movies every season.
If you’re like us and keep listening to Christmas music until Epiphany, don’t miss the best Christmas music playlist in the land: Funky Christmas (I’m not at all biased of course).
I love Jan Richardson, and she has a free women’s retreat for the Christmas season, culminating with Epiphany, which is celebrated as “women’s Christmas” for many around the world.
According to Richardson, “Originating in Ireland, where it is known as Nollaig na mBan, Women’s Christmas began as a day when the women, who often carried the domestic responsibilities all year, took Epiphany as an occasion to enjoy a bit of respite and celebrate together at the end of the holidays.” Now that is something that I think we should all incorporate into our holiday celebrating!
This Pantsuit Politics episode with an epidemiologist on the vaccine was soo interesting and educational. I’m fascinated about every behinds-the-scene story and reporting on how quickly the scientists were able to get the vaccine in our hands.
This whole Twitter thread of observations of a Muslim man really celebrating Christmas for the first time, but especially this part:
Seasonal pic of the week
Pretend you received one of these in your mailbox - I’m so thankful for each of you that read my little words in this space ❤️
Cheers to finding some #covidsilverlinings as you reflect back on 2020!
Sara