On the morning of November 26, 2020, I woke up late, watched some TV, and cuddled with my cats. My husband and my daughter had left the house around five that morning to go hunting, an extremely socially distanced activity. When I felt like it, I got up and turned on NPR while I ate a bowl of Frosted Mini-Wheats and sipped my coffee. “A very happy Thanksgiving to everyone,” the commentator said before launching into the news.
Oh, right, I thought. It’s Thanksgiving.
Wait, am I supposed to be doing something?
During a normal year, I would be happy to do all these things
Except this isn’t a normal year.
I’ve been doing my job, plus teaching the classes of a colleague who has been hospitalized with a bad case of the coronavirus. On top of that, our school went online a week ago, so I’m homeschooling, teaching science (not my certification!), and being an at-risk coordinator/instructional coach.
I’m pooped!
So I was 100% OK with Thanksgiving being virtual this year. I only took down the Halloween decorations that would've be in the camera angle, and dumped them unceremoniously in the corner. We only had to cook for our family of three, and we still got to eat with our family — even if they’re not in the room. Of course, I missed eating all the lovely things my mom and sister-in-law make. I do get tired of my own cooking, but then again, it’s worth it to remove the pressure of having people over, and trying to curate the perfect holiday, when we all know that doesn’t exist.
In the end, it’s just a day
You can add whatever significance you want to it, and in this pandemic, you can add the significance without the stress. Concentrate not on what you’re missing, but on what you’re gaining. As we plan our virtual Christmas, I’m already looking forward to having time over the holiday break to de-stress instead of making a ton of extra work for myself.
Here’s to a stress-free holiday season, where we can use technology to do all the good stuff, and skip the rest — because we need all the silver linings we can get right now.
