Shining on the Shadows - December 22, 2022 | Kids Out and About Hudson Valley <

Shining on the Shadows

December 22, 2022

Debra Ross

On its face, the holiday season is one long celebration of good things: peace, good will toward men, generosity, harmony, connection, art, love, family, food, and all the other forces that have let humans thrive on Earth. We as a culture have gone to great lengths to make the season magical, especially for kids. Many of us who are now parents can recall childhood holidays filled with shimmering lights, music, and presents.

But for each adult, much more swirls underneath and behind all the glow, muddling the simplicity of the light of the season. That's because over time, reality inevitably sprinkles disappointments and losses among life's joys and blessings. The holiday season's hype acts as a giant magnifying glass, focusing our attention on our own personal ghosts of holidays past, which makes everything around us more intense this time of year: the joys, sure, but the sorrows, too.

So even for those who are naturally merry and bright, the holidays are complicated, because humans are complicated. That doesn't mean we shouldn't strive for the simple joys at this time of year, especially for and with our kids. Experiences that are pure and innocent really are pure and innocent; their stories are woven into the fabric of who we were and who we are, individually and together, and they're just as true as the bad things out there. We seek these experiences together, and we tell their stories to our kids. We hold them up as sacred as we let their bright and gentle light shine on the shadows.

Wishing you all the peace and joy of the season.

Deb