The Herald-Zeitung

As I sat at my kitchen table to pen this week’s column, trying my best to resist the urge to write about the alleged “balloon boy” hoax, I noticed that the publication date would be Oct. 25. I’m sure, like me, you realize what that means – there is exactly two months until Christmas.

That certainly explains all the holiday décor I noticed in the store this past weekend even though we’re still a week away from trick-or-treat night. Like it or not, believe it or not, the Yuletide holiday freight train has left the station and will arrive in your town and your home before you can sing the second verse of Jingle Bells.

Now the closest thing I ever came to an appreciation for statistics was the gift of a respectable “C” I received in the only statistics class I ever took as an undergraduate in college. Statistics can be as misleading as a career politician’s promise at election time. However, some credible research I have recently read indicates that in the period just before the holidays there’s a significant spike in the number of homicides, suicides and people seeking treatment for depression. Another source claims that December is the month with the highest number of claims for car insurance.

So statistically speaking, which I seldom do, the holidays are a perilous and deceptive time. It’s a time when expectations are often at their highest and when we force ourselves to seriously juggle our schedules, our friendships and our finances. It’s a time of worry when we tend to cram and stretch ourselves so thin we easily miss the point of it all. So given that we only have 60 days to prepare ourselves for the holidays, permit me to offer a few simple suggestions, not only for the next few weeks, but for the new year to come.

• Set your own pace and don’t permit others to dictate your holiday schedule. Do what you can, when you can, and let the rest go.

• Be honest with yourself about what you can and cannot afford. Accumulating debt will certainly not deliver the “peace” that the holidays promise, but rather get your new year off to a stressful beginning.

• Keep in mind that nothing depletes your energy more than worrying, and the longer you worry the heavier those fears become. The more you worry, the less you have to invest in the things that mean the most to you.

• Slow down! If you don’t have the time, don’t do it. It’s OK to skip a party or two.

• Remember, the very best thing about the holidays is not the perfect tree, the glimmering décor or even the lavish gifts concealed in layers of exquisite wrap, it’s the connection we make with those we love in a way that is real and meaningful. Often, it’s simply the precious gift of your time and your appreciation that means the most.