When the Most Wonderful Time of the Year is the Most Difficult

They call the Christmas season “the most wonderful time of the year.”

The weeks between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day are filled with festivities. You are surrounded by shimmering lights, beautiful gifts, shiny ornaments, sparkly bows, and holiday parties.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year is the Most Difficult.

But when you’re grieving, the most wonderful time of the year is the most difficult. No amount of glitter, candy canes, and eggnog can distract from the pain of missing someone special at Christmastime.

No matter how many years they’ve been gone, when your favorite person to decorate the house and make Christmas magic with is no longer here, the most wonderful time of the year is painful.

When your favorite person to shop for and exchange gifts with is gone, the most wonderful time of the year is brutal.

When your favorite person to drive around and look at Christmas lights with is gone, the most wonderful time of the year is tough.

And when your favorite person to bake cookies, make mulled apple cider, and prepare Christmas Eve dinner with has passed away, the most wonderful time of the year is sad.

The traditions of the holiday season magnify your loved one’s absence.

The traditions of the holiday season magnify your loved one’s absence in a way that is difficult to explain to someone who hasn’t yet experienced a profound loss.

Your loved one’s absence is painfully obvious when you’re eating at the dining room table, exchanging gifts around the tree in the living room, preparing food in the kitchen, and riding in the car to look at lights.

No matter how many holiday seasons they’ve missed, it’s difficult to celebrate and joyfully participate in festivities when you’re missing their presence.

And no matter how many Christmases have passed since their passing, it hurts to spend yet another Christmas season without them.

The most wonderful time of the year is the most difficult time of the year when you’re grieving.