The Holidays

The Holidays are always a mixed bag for me. The work, travel, and family stress can definitely add up in this period. It’s also been a time of personal loss for me as my mom and grandmother both passed away right before the holidays during my childhood.

Despite all that, I’ve always loved Christmas. Some of my fondest memories as a child were around the holidays. I loved decorating the Christmas tree every year. I loved going downtown with my Mom to all the fun holiday shops. And I especially loved getting a lot of presents every Christmas.

This year, we have my in-laws in town which has been fun in many ways and stressful in other ways. My father in-law’s recovery from his stroke last year has been up and down. It’s sad to see them in this state, but at some point, we have to just be happy that he’s still here after such a big stroke.

We’ve had a lot of fun. Having our families hang out has been a special time for all of us especially with the newborn. I also really enjoy taking them out to places that I love in San Francisco. But yes, nothing is easy nowadays with aging parents and a newborn.

This year especially I’ve been really relying on optimism and my meditation to get me through. I’ve had to be more patient than ever before which is one of my weaknesses. It’s a special few weeks for our families and I want to make sure to focus on all the positives as we don’t know how many more of these times we’ll have again.