At one of my writing workshops over the weekend, we were writing in response to a picture. In my picture a beautiful dark-eyed woman was celebrating at some kind of party- blowing a streamer, with colored lights glittering behind her. I could hear the loud music, and the voices; I could feel the presence of the crowd. It brought home to me the Christmas and New Year’s season awaiting us all-the food and the parties, the drinks and the drugs; and the deep sadness and isolation many people experience in the midst of it all. Every year I have clients who speak to me about their challenges at this time of year. My daughter often says about birthdays, Christmas and New Years, “It’s a set-up, a perfect way to make yourself miserable. Any other day of the year, you’d be happy just to have an ordinary day. But on these days, you’re supposed to be having an incredible time, and often, it doesn’t measure up to what you had hoped for.” I have a few friends who have been bold and brave enough to declare, “no presents this year” and stick to it. I know people who have even tried ignoring Christmas and birthdays altogether. But I sense there’s something here the human heart longs for. I think these times are really about community and celebration.
And this is what we often call celebration: herd us all together into one space, turn up the music, pass out the drinks and the drugs, and leave us to drift-lost, isolated, occasionally making brief contact before we sink even deeper into the collective coma.
When did we forget how to celebrate, really? What is it to celebrate? How do I celebrate you, us, our life together?
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