Take a moment wherever you are and pause.

You can find a comfortable seat if that works best for you.

Or feel free to simply stand where you are.

Feel your feet on the ground ground lift your body tall and breathe

holidays often come with a lot of expectations expectations.

We often compare our holidays to the holidays from our past. We may often feel a high level of expectation around how we perceive the holiday to unfold, the feelings that will feel,

the moments that will share and create, the memories that we hope to make for the future.

We may approach the holidays hoping that they will look a certain way.

All of this expectation can lead to disappointment. This is normal.

So take a moment to simply acknowledge the truth of how you feel.

Whether you're sitting comfortably with your eyes closed or you're locked in the bathroom

somewhere, taking a moment for yourself, find your breath.

It's okay to feel disappointed.

Pretending that you are not only leads to more stress, to more disappointment, sucking

us further down into the vortex.

Simply acknowledging how you feel with compassion and honesty

can be the tool that we need to simply turn it around.

Take a moment and notice where that disappointment lives in your body right now.

Maybe it's lodged behind your eyes or stuck in your jaw or trapped in your chest.

For the next few breaths, concentrate on your inhale and your exhale, and breathe as much space as you can

into your body. As you let go of the tension and the stress, ask yourself, what else could I let go of right now? Using your exhale for support.

How might you encourage a release of your own expectations? What might that offer you? and letting go of the comparisons.

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