how not to have a blue christmas

The winter holidays are a time to reflect. Christmas orients you back to the past, reliving childhood memories, events, and personal interactions. New Years turns you toward the future, determining things you resolve to change in the coming year. To some, the holidays are depressing because they bring constant reminders that we are left with less of what we once had. The song “Blue Christmas” has become the melancholy ballad for heartbreak, loss, and unrequited love during the holiday season. But this does not have to be the case. Loss is an integral part of life. Every single breathing person has suffered some type of loss; loss of a marriage, a job, a pet, a parent, a child, trust, faith, finances, or friends. That is a part of life 365 days a year, not just at Christmas time. The sooner I learn to keep dancing when it’s raining, the better off I’ll be. As long as I equate my present self worth or state of mind with what I no longer have, I’ll be blue all year long. If it’s painful enough to make you still cry tears of sorrow, be glad it’s over and in the past. But the moment I consider all the things I have to be thankful for, I’m content and at peace. If it’s meaningful enough to still make you cry tears of joy, be glad it’ll always be a part of your life.