Slowing Down: Savoring The Season

I look forward to the holidays every year with childlike enthusiasm. I’m the one who’s ready to put the tree up a week before Thanksgiving—sometimes sooner (and I have). There’s just something about the lights, the music, the anticipation, the traditions… it’s a season unlike any other.

And it passes in a blur.

By the time Christmas arrives, I’ve hurried through the weeks leading up to it. Shopping, planning, decorating, baking, scheduling gatherings, it all races by so quickly that I barely catch my breath. I reach the day I’ve been waiting for… and I’m somehow not ready for it to be over.

But at the same time, I’m exhausted and more than ready.

Then comes the bittersweet part. When I begin taking down the tree and packing away ornaments, you know the ones, the handmade treasures the children created decades ago along with gifted ornaments from Christmases past. I feel that familiar lump in my throat. I wrap fragile heirlooms, roll strands of lights, and tuck everything into boxes marked “Christmas,” and I find myself unexpectedly emotional.

I’ve even cried.

Because once again, I realize I didn’t slow down enough to savor the time.

It wasn’t that the season wasn’t good, it was full of blessings—but I rushed past the wonder. The holy moments. The laughter. The once-a-year traditions that are now memories. And every year, I promise myself I will do it differently.

So, this year, I’m trying something different. I don’t want to reach the end of the season and feel like I only lived it in fast-forward. I want to slow down enough to enjoy time with family, the glow of the tree, the smell of cinnamon or pine, the songs we only hear this time of year.

I’m realizing that slowing down isn’t about doing less, it's about being present.

It’s choosing to sit with a cup of cocoa instead of rushing to the next task. It’s pausing to admire the lights instead of hurrying past them. It’s watching a Christmas movie without folding laundry at the same time. But most importantly, it’s taking time to remember the gift behind the season -Jesus, Emmanuel, God with us.

May the joy and wonder of the Christmas season fill your hearts this year as savor the season.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!