Sue's Solutions: When Christmas Colors Fade: Finding Joy in Moments...

Sue's Solutions: When Christmas Colors Fade: Finding Joy in Moments...: Not every Christmas is red and cozy. The vividness of the golds and greens can fade quickly to sienna when the moments of your life take an ...

When Christmas Colors Fade: Finding Joy in Moments

Not every Christmas is red and cozy. The vividness of the golds and greens can fade quickly to sienna when the moments of your life take an unexpected turn. Even the most stoic of believers in seasonal joy may see only grey in picture-perfect scenes when their life has been turned around.

We might ask ourselves, “What can we do to re-ignite the joy into the life of someone who has experienced sadness, grief or unexpected trauma during the holiday season?” The only answer to that question may be truly beyond our grasp. Life changing events are rarely cured quickly or managed with a few exchanges of yuletide spirit.

While some of us sit snugly in front of a warm glowing fireplace with rich foamy cups of hot cocoa, others may be pacing the halls of an Emergency Room, searching a cold empty parking lot for a stray dollar bill, or enduring a heart-wrenching farewell to a loved one. While our world is bright and shiny, another’s world may be fading. 

The hard truth is we really don’t know what is going on in the lives of all the millions of faces we see flashing by us in our world. Reality is much more than a popular show on a television or a boastful social media post. Reality is what the humans behind the millions of faces we see are dealing with every day.

Stores and kiosks are overflowing with the richest of glowing gifts, sure to light up the day of any well thought of recipient. But, what if the only gift on that recipient’s list is a visit from a loved one, a positive result from a medical test, or an answer to a prayer?

What do we tell the lost soul searching for answers he no longer believes will come? Or the parents who have just said goodbye to the greatest gift God can bestow on them? How do we fix the unfixable?

Unfortunately, the answer sometimes is that there is no answer. Life is full of the unknown. So many things are out of our control. Heartbreak happens here, while elation overflows there. By the sheer nature of our instincts, we persevere through the dense fog and cracked interiors. Holiday colors blend, change and twist in the chilly December air. We find ourselves searching for the happiness and peace we can still find in simple moments.

We feel sun shine through a closed window or see it on the glistening snow. A light in a distant window reminds us of a long ago home. We hear something funny and begin to laugh. Treasured photos are found in the box of ornaments. A calming hand is placed on our shoulder. The scratchy PA system plays a favorite holiday melody. Familiar voices call out our name. Jewelry once lost glimmers from beside the Christmas tree. A face we greatly miss appears at our door.

Life is hard. It is also sweet.

So, paint your holidays with a broad brush. Reach out. Be generous in spirit and show simple human kindness. Be understanding of all life’s moments. Like the colors on a Christmas star, they will change with reflection.

Sue Cryer  
www.myscww.org

(Dedicated to my loved ones who are experiencing losses this holiday season.)