Choose Joy

Greetings friends.  Thanksgiving is now over and the holiday moves are a'plenty.  Home Alone and Elf?  Feel free to show those any time USA and TBS.  Movies such as Love Actually?  Feel free to never show that awful movie again.  I know it's a ton of people (re:  girls') favorite holiday movies, but it's on my top five list of worst movies of all time, along with A Walk to Remember, The Notebook (well, it probably would be if I'd seen it), The Holiday, and Saw II. 

But, I want to talk about a more serious topic than I usually cover on my blogs.  People know I hate the holidays, and some people know a few of the reasons but not all of them.  Well, it's time for me to shut up.  Just because I don't have positive holiday experiences doesn't mean I have to glare and sulk when 'All I Want for Christmas is You' comes on during a flip cup tournament (true story).  About a year ago I started reading a blog at www.littleblueboo.com.  The writer is an incredibly creative woman, who also suffered through the loss of her father and a serious cancer diagnosis and vigorous chemo treatments in a short time span.  Thankfully, her cancer is in remission and she is living a healthy life with her husband and daughter.  But her mantra throughout her trials is what has really struck a chord with me:  Choose Joy. 

Sometimes choosing joy is hard.  It's much easier to sit around feeling sorry for yourself and eating bleu cheese crumbles (wait, is that just me?) than to put on some makeup, fluff up your hair, and go out and meet your friends for drinks.  It's super easy to sit around with a frown rather than plastering a fake smile on your face and pretending nothing is wrong.  But you know what, you're going to get an actual smile on your face a hell of a lot faster if you're around people that make you happy than if you're dwelling on the hard things in your life with no one but your cat for company. 

So that is my goal for the holidays:  to choose joy.  When negative thoughts hit, choose joy.  When I don't want to leave my apartment, choose joy.  And when I get anxiety about the next holiday approaching, choose joy.  So this holiday season I will be surrounding myself with things that make me happy:  UK basketball, friends, good food, friends, good books, friends, Zumba, friends, hot chocolate, and most importantly, friends. 

So while you're out caroling, making gingerbread houses, decorating Christmas cookies, listening to the Mariah Carey holiday CD on repeat, or whatever it is you holiday lovers do, I may not join you, but I'll be out choosing joy in my own way.