Surviving a Blue Christmas and Possibly Even Enjoy It

When I think of Christmas, I think about the birth of Christ, beautiful carols, a Christmas tree, Christmas ornaments, good food and the smile and happiness of people everywhere. Yes I think of all that, but I also have a feeling of loss: the loss of my parents, the loss of a father from a child's life, loss of a job making the holiday season much more difficult. There are many ways to work through the holidays when you are in pain. The steps I give you are the easiest I have found for myself. In the end you may come through the holiday season knowing you have helped someone else in a way you never knew you could. You may even begin to anticipate the Christmas season and welcome the next one with open arms.

At Thanksgiving, have each family member make a small album with 5-6 photos of past Christmases they remember. Set aside one hour each week between Thanksgiving and Christmas the whole family can get together to discuss and reminisce about one photo from each and all the memories those photos represent. You could talk about the people in the photo and tell stories about those people as it relates to that Christmas or tell about the presents you received or some funny stories about the weather and how you all celebrated it.

At Thanksgiving, ask each family member one thing they loved about Christmases past they would like to revive and celebrate again. My daughter likes to ride around looking at the Christmas lights and decorations at night though out our area. I like to go to church on Christmas Eve. Other ideas of things of the past we may have gotten away from are: Christmas carolling around the neighborhood or at a nursing home (bringing joy to others), reading St. Luke 2 from the Bible on Christmas Eve before bedtime, or making cookies or a gingerbread house together. Make sure you have time to do one for each family member and schedule it so you don't run out of time for each of them.

Start a new tradition. Putting the past and the present together and openly talking about it can be very healing. Talk about one new thing each year you would like to do as a family to celebrate Christmas. This could be something as simple as visiting a living nativity or living Christmas Tree, or going to the woods looking at all the trees to chop your own tree down instead of buying it, taking a family portrait each year, or watching old Christmas movies. You are creating memories for yourself and your children for future generations to reminisce about.

On Christmas day, after the gifts are all opened, the dinner is prepared and consumed, and you are ready to relax, take a few moments to prepare for the upcoming year and another time when you have family togetherness and lots of fun. As a family, choose several destinations for your family vacation and then narrow it down to one tentative one. Talk about the vacation as if it is one month away, discussing the things you will pack to take along, the foods you will enjoy, the sights you will see. You get the picture! Do anything you can to take your mind away from the end of the holiday season. Making these tentative plans will help you focus on another family time of the year and help you to end the season of giving.

I think after following the steps to Surviving a Blue Christmas and Enjoying It you will find your life is filled with love, joy, excitement, nostalgia, sharing, hope and family. Maybe this will be the best Christmas ever. Give thanks!

Don't forget to take plenty of pictures of each and every Christmas. Possibly one day, years from now, someone will be dragging out those pictures and repeating the steps of How to Survive a Blue Christmas and Enjoy It.