Depending on how you celebrate your holidays, it’s that magical Christmas, Kwanzaa, or Hanukkah time of year. The air outside is brisk and cold, making your cheeks turn bright shades of pink and red from the icy winter breeze. There’s a magic that hangs in the quiet hours of the evening as the stars come out to twinkle over warm homes and hearts. And the stillness of the morning sky is more than enough to keep a heart full all day long.
Christmas always reminds me to be grateful for the year that has passed, along with the year that’s coming. Ever since I was a small child, the magic of this month wraps around me leaving bits of gratitude, happiness, and nostalgia in its track. I simply can’t approach Christmas without a full heart and soul.
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This year has been another year for the books. As I look back over the past 365 days, it feels as if there should be a better way to describe all the learning, growing, and laughter that took place in the days. There should be an alternate Dictionary filled with words that can only be felt with the heart, and these words would be used loosely and fully around the holidays to describe the past year.
This year I feel like I finally began to discover myself. I’m not foolish enough (now) to say that I’ve found myself; we are ever-changing beings filled with wishes, hopes, dreams, and paths that constantly ebb and flow, changing our intentions, surroundings, and life. But this year was a year of discovery.
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A year of learning how to preserve my own foods. A year of learning to say, “I’m an aspiring farmer” with more ease and less fear. A year of walking away from commercial food sources and making my own from scratch. A year of learning organic gardening and crazy terms from ‘bolting’ to ‘compost tea’. A year of watching seeds turn to seedlings, turn to plants, turn to nutrition for my family’s bodies. A year of patience being tested, countless blisters, and learning how to DIY every known garden support ever created. A year of feeling my soul awaken to all the gifts that surround us just waiting to be explored with an eager heart.
Here’s to another year of eternal growth, holiday magic, and moments that change the path of your life. Wishing you all a truly wonderful, magical, memory-filled holiday season ♥
