Christmas is one of those seasons: it is so hectic. You’ve got to think ahead and prepare to have food for several days. The shops are crazy-busy. The weather is cold and wet. The days are short. Family hopes you visit, or they plan to visit you. At work you must put in extra efforts to make sure you can actually have a Christmas break (from work at least). Then when Christmas comes and the big Christmas meal is over you are left tired and grumpy, because the kitchen and the living room are a mess. Who is going to clean that all up?! Just thinking about it makes me tired already!
As you probably noticed, the love language playing up is Acts of Service: either serving or being served really speaks to me. On the down side, when I feel left alone doing the serving or not valued for what I contribute… ☹
A lot of ‘serving’ is needed during Christmas time, especially with the high expectations around the Christmas meal. My potential pitfall is to dread the work to such an extent that I can’t enjoy the process (the meal). Luckily my wife Tineke is quick to remind me: “Lighten up! We’ll fix this later…together.” After a sigh of relief, I am able to enjoy the family time.
That’s the key for me: if I know that I will get help making and serving the food & drinks and afterwards help with cleaning up – you’ve made my (or should I say ‘our’) day!