Breakfast

"Good friendships are like breakfast. You think you’re too busy to eat breakfast, but then you find yourself exhausted and cranky halfway through the day, and discover that your attempt to save time totally backfired. In the same way, you can try to go it alone because you don’t have time or because your house is too messy to have people over, or because making new friends is like the very worst parts of dating. But halfway through a hard day or a hard week, you’ll realize in a flash that you’re breathtakingly lonely, and that the Christmas cards aren’t much company. Get up, make a phone call, buy a cheap ticket, open your front door. Because there really is nothing like good friends, like the sounds of their laughter and the tones of their voices and the things they teach us in the quietest, smallest moments." -Shauna Niequist in "Bittersweet"

For me, the Christmas season always starts out with such anticipation. I can't wait to watch all the movies (I have a set lists of Musts), bake all the cookies (well and cupcakes and muffins), and do basically all of the things they do in the movie Elf. 

[For instance my Christmas bucket lists looks something like:

• All the movies: Elf, The Holiday, Love Actually, Muppet Christmas Carol, all of the old school Rudolphs and Frosties (except not the ones where they bring in baby new year or jack frost)
• Bake the classics: the peanut butter cookies with kisses in the middle, gingerbread, snickerdoodles, and just like all of the Christmas-decorated cupcakes I see on pinterest.
• Go look at Christmas lights!
• Find the best hot chocolate in the city! (or a really good one)
• Go see the big Christmas trees!
• Find an occasion to wear my Christmas sweater!]

Then comes the end-of-the-semester crunch. I should be used to the this by now. I've been in higher education (either as a student or now a young professional) for long enough to know that the time from Thanksgiving to Christmas is always just a blur. No, I don't have exams, but all of my students do....or they are trying to complete their theses papers in time to graduate. Thank goodness I no longer have to experience that kind of stress, but it is easy to get caught up in the stress of my students, the stress of the impending holidays (searching desperately for a way to squeeze Christmas present money from my budget), and the stress that comes with lots of traveling to see as many loved ones as possible in a short period of time. 

It's easy to let things slip by during this season: sleep, working out, breakfast, and friends to name a few things. And I can find lots of excuses. It's too dark/cold outside. I have too much to do. Too many Christmas parties to go to. Too much potluck food to cook. Too many things to pay for. However, in the midst of all of the parties and running around, I'm still stressed and still cranky and I don't know why because it's Christmas and you're supposed to be joyful and triumphant!

If there's one thing I know about myself, it's that whenever I'm really cranky it's probably because I'm hungry. (I need to snack at regular intervals for optimal functioning.) Well, I think that's why this passage from Shauna's book Bittersweet (Yes, I know I quote this author ALL the time and I'll probably never stop) has really stayed with me over the past week. Although I feel surrounded by festivity, parties, events, plans, and preparations for Christmas, I also feel a little cranky, a little irritable, a little hungry, maybe even a little lonely. I think this yearning is almost  inherent in the advent (also winter) season for me, but that it's also indicative of that I'm investing time into the wrong things. I may be spending lots of time with  people, but is it quality time? Am I being present? Christmas is not an excuse to stop being genuine, to stop investing in our family and friends because we're too concerned about what we're going to give them from Etsy or the DIY gift boards on Pinterest. We have an incredible gift to give others and ourselves already: just being present and pausing to really experience one of the most wonderful times of the year.

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Fun Fact: Apparently Founding Farmers had their chicken and waffles with eggs named the Best Breakfast by Food Network a couple of years back. And now I am hungry.