Holidays Are Hard for Many….and the Reasons Vary

It is easy to see the joy others are seemingly experiencing. We get emails wishing us a joyful Thanksgiving. We see advertisements of full tables of food and a gathered family across generations. We read articles about the joy of the season. We get notes and calls from friends, wishing us the happiest of times.

But, we need to recognize that we are not living in a Hallmark world, despite their best efforts to make us think that all stories have happy endings. Some folks have lost loved ones. Some folks are ill, whether from long Covid or other ailments. Some individuals are struggling with work or relationships or both. Some people are struggling to find out how to re-engage again as the world reopens in this quasi-post Pandemic time. Some people are struggling to put food on the table. Others are struggling to deal with family dynamics. Still others are missing Thanksgivings past — with happier times or different attendees at the table or a different sense of wellness.

I wish we could recognize that Thanksgiving does not produce joy for all. And, we would be wise to look out for others, share support for others, think of others and remember that the holidays are not always easy and filled with love and harmony. And that’s an understatement.

So, as we approach Thanksgiving this week, let’s pause and remember how differently we all may experience this holiday and work to enable others to navigate forward as best as they are able, knowing that we understand that joy is not pervasive and hurt and pain are present for many.

Wars, shootings at schools and malls and clubs and streets, illnesses, car and bus and van crashes, floods and fires and of course COVID have changed the lives of many. So have fractures relationships between spouses or partners and parents/children. Let’s pause here and recognize how hard it is right this very minute for folks at all ages and stages to celebrate.

Yes, we can give thanks…..but we can also give compassion and understanding and awareness. Those latter items — compassion, understanding and awareness — have remarkable power. They can help ameliorate pain.