Christmas is a sad holiday for me

[kevinbgoode1]

3. I think it takes a lot of courage to talk about the holiday this way. . .

as we are so saturated with the messages of joy and happy family reunions, etc. I've become quite accustomed to spending the holiday alone and actually look forward to it each season. When I lived a long distance from home and had a partner years ago, he would usually go home for several days, but I would be stuck working, so I gradually learned to find small ways to enjoy the holiday. One of my favorite years was making lasagna for myself and then taking a whole french silk pie and eating right from the pan in my bed while chatting with some online friends. . .haha. When that relationship ended, I went home a couple of times and it was fine, but there was usually some backdrop of drama. Families change over time - transitions in their own lives, marriages/divorces, children grow up and start their own traditions, people pass on. It is a holiday that can be hard on single people - I used to be pressured to work so the ones with "families" could have the day off and I would do it until that pressure became an annual expectation. Heck, I used to be afraid to tell anyone that I'd be alone on a holiday because I didn't want pity invitations, or to infringe on someone else's celebration - after a few years, I grew to learning how to explain why I preferred the day without any commitment.

You aren't the only one out there - and I have often thought it might be fun to just put together an online dinner chat, or a potluck in real life for those by themselves. In the meantime, I seem happiest planning a nice meal alone (and take a plate to a neighbor) and watching a 3-D movie. I'd offer to try to play a video game with you online, but honestly, I purchased an XBOX One last year (first gaming system since my Sega in the. . .um. . .1980's). . .and I don't think I make it 15 seconds before megadeath in Call of Duty- Ghosts. Maybe I'll spend part of the day just trying to deal with that remote - otherwise, I'm just happy with the voice commands on the TV and the Skype capability with a few friends.

I am sorry that you are feeling bad on this holiday - but I do hope that seeing there are others who are alone is some comfort. And if you lived near me, I would have invited you over for dinner, we could watch Guardian of the Galaxies in 3D and you could coach me on using an XBOX controller and I'd make you some kind of rum drink. And other alone posters would be welcome too. . . I'm good about sharing a French Silk pie.