Not all work-related holiday things are fun. There are plenty of terrible office holiday parties and gift swaps, not to mention doses of forced workplace cheer. That can be difficult at times, perhaps more than average for those who are natural introverts or who don’t celebrate Christmas. I fit into both categories . . . which is why I was surprised to discover that I missed some work-related seasonal things in my first year of retirement.
I definitely did not miss workplace gift decisions or office decorating. But it used to be nice to chat with my work friends in the run-up to the holidays, to find out their plans and hear about their families or travels. A lot of people feel overwhelmed with holiday preparations and therefore don’t want to spend extra time on the phone or in person right before the holidays. But if you’re already at work and it’s lunchtime? That’s a great time to share! I missed hearing about what people were up to.
We also had some fun traditions at my last job, especially in earlier years when IDG Founder Pat McGovern was still alive. He’d come to the office to meet each employee personally, shake our hands, comment on something good we’d done that year (he was prepped in advance but then remembered what our managers had written), and hand us our annual bonuses in cash (in a card in an envelope, that is, not just hand us bills). We’d all dress nicer than usual and joke it was like prom day. Afterwards, we’d enjoy holiday snacks and trade tales of what “Uncle Pat” might have asked us. It may not sound like much, but it was an enjoyable shared ritual to those of us who were there. Things like that help build a community.
Also, the seasonal run-up to the holiday week was a good emotional marker to signal the year was winding down.
Without all that, the days leading up to last week felt kind of strange.
I didn’t have as many seasonal markers in my personal life anymore, yet things were still different externally. Trying to do simple tasks like pick something up at a store (bad idea unless you love being packed in with frantic last-minute shoppers) or call a government office with a question were best postponed. And I mostly put plans to see people in person for walks on hold, since so many of my friends and relatives were either away or busy.
Other things, though, like going to the Georgia O’Keeffe exhibit at the Museum of Fine Arts, were way better than usual, since so many people were either out of town or busy with holiday errands. We actually found free parking on the street right by the MFA last Sunday morning!
Once the holiday run-up days had passed, though, the actual Christmas-to-New-Years week has been pretty much the same so ar. We had a lovely Christmas Day with close friends, are making Hanukkah plans to see family, are looking forward to New Year’s Eve afternoon festivities along a local rail trail, and may stop in at a friend’s New Year’s weekend party. I was typically off Christmas week anyway, so retirement hasn’t changed this part of the year too much.
Except, of course, for the biggest change: I don’t have to dread a return to work coming before I’m ready.
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