How to put the breaks on holiday stress: Do Nothing.

Here we all are, paused, at the top of the roller coaster of the calendar year. We are about to plunge into the Holiday Season- the final six weeks. Sure it is a wild, exhilarating ride- special school programs, family visits, and plenty of traditional food. But it is a stressful time. There are too many events crammed into schedules that already had too few hours in them. Pressures at work are mounting, too; next year’s forecasts are due, year end goals aren’t yet complete, and half the staff is on vacation. The ride to December 31st is intense, leaving us out of breath, eyes streaming, with our hair disheveled. Is there any way to put the breaks on, just for a little while?

Yes. I recommend “Doing Nothing.”

Christopher Robin explains how to Do Nothing in The World of Pooh by A.A. Milne. He is having a conversation with Winnie the Pooh about favorite things. When Pooh asks Christopher Robin what he likes to do best, he answers, “What I like doing best is Nothing.” “How do you do Nothing?” asked Pooh, after he had wondered for a long time. “Well, it’s when people call out at you just as you’re going off to do it, ‘what are you going to do, Christopher Robin’, and you say, ‘Oh, Nothing.’ And then you go and do it.” “Oh, I see” said Pooh. (I don’t think he did see, really.) Christopher Robin then clarified it a bit. “It means just going along, listening to all the things you can’t hear, and not bothering.”
If that explanation doesn’t help you, here are a few of my favorite ways of Doing Nothing:

* Throw rocks into the puddle in my driveway with my youngest daughter
* Crawl back into bed mid-morning on a Saturday for no reason other than it is warm and cozy
* Sit on a chair in the back yard while the kids play on the swings and let the sun warm my face
* Perch on the edge of a bed to watch one of my children sleep
* Wander around the yard and down my street after everyone goes to bed, watching the clouds race in front of the moon.

In other words, Doing Nothing.

Any of these activities put the breaks on the holiday roller coaster. They give you a chance to catch your breath, wipe your eyes, and fix your hair before the wild ride of Life continues.

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