Every year around this time, I feel that familiar holiday mix settle in. Excitement. Nostalgia. A tiny flash of pressure. And every year, I tell myself I’m going to slow down and actually enjoy it.
But the truth is, I spend way too much of November and December trying to “get ready” for a season I want to be present for. My goal is always to be organized. For some reason, I’ve convinced myself that in order to enjoy the holidays, my house has to be spotless. As a result, I usually tear everything apart and make a bigger mess trying to fix the mess. It’s my specialty.
The holidays have changed for me over the years. I don’t have the same family obligations anymore. The big meals, the endless bouncing from one house to another, has faded as loved ones have passed and kids have grown up. There’s a strange quiet in that. A little sad, a little freeing. I can shape the holidays the way I want them now… if I can just get out of my own way long enough to enjoy them.
And honestly, I want simple things:
• Funky coffee shops
• Browsing my favorite indie bookstore
• Maybe trying a holiday recipe or two
• Wandering around somewhere festive without spending a ton of money
• Keeping it as local as possible
I wouldn’t mind having a picture perfect home. I really wouldn’t. But right now, I’m trying to aim for “peaceful enough that I can enjoy my own life.” I want a home that feels warm and intentional, even if it looks lived in.
So this year, I’m trying to start earlier. Clean now. Organize now. Make some breathing room now. Not for perfection. For presence. Because I know how fast the season moves, and how easy it is to look up and realize it slipped right through.
Maybe that’s the real holiday ritual I want: choosing to be here, in my own life, instead of chasing some imaginary version of it.
Here’s to slower days ahead. Or at least cleaner ones. Either way, I’ll take it.
Salt Latch 