Stay sane over the holidays!

By Elizabeth Morse Read

As much as we all love to go traveling over the river and through the woods to grandmother’s house for the holidays, it can be nerve-jangling and stressful to the extreme.

All the built-up expectations and hopes for better relations with our extended family get dashed when Uncle Harry starts spouting off about his political beliefs, cousin Suzie announces she’s getting divorced (again), and someone put the punchbowl on the floor and Granny’s pooch is passed out under the table. Add to that all the weeks of frenzied decorating, gift shopping, entertaining visitors, social obligations, and forced-smile jollity, and you’re ready to pull your hair out and move far, far away.

Unless you take “sanity time-outs” during these hectic holidays, you won’t enjoy any of the precious moments and experiences – you’ll just want to get it all over with as fast as possible. So, here are a few suggestions on how you can actually enjoy some of the additional obligations and out-of-the-ordinary get-togethers of the holiday season.

Reawaken Your Childhood Sense of Wonder

It’s been a long time since you believed in Santa Claus, but you can still remember the thrill of your first ride down a hill on a toboggan or your amazement watching a town tree-lighting for the first time. Remind yourself that the holidays are really for small children – make it extra special for them by letting them experience going to an ice-skating rink (fmcicesports/com/rinks, theprovidencerink.com); watching a production of “Disney on Ice” (dunkindonutscenter. com), “Llama, Llama Live!” (zeiterion. org), “Annie!” (ppacri.org), “A New England Nutcracker” (newbedfordballet. org), or “A Christmas Carol” (trinityrep. com); riding on a tiny train through a twinkling wonderland at Edaville Railway in Carver (edaville.com) or walking through the spectacular lighting displays at Roger Williams Park in Providence (rwpzoo.org).

Reconnect With Your Community

You’ve been so busy speed-shopping at the mega-malls or the big box stores that you’ve forgotten about the little shops and local merchants in your own town that offer unique and memorable gifts or services. Buy a gift certificate for a massage or a salon haircut instead of yet-another mass-produced ugly sweater. Attend a local community theatre play (yourtheatre.com, littletheatre.net, marionartcenter.org) or a church choir concert instead of trekking into the big city for a splashy (and expensive) Broadway production. Go to your town’s holiday events and mingle with your neighbors, and have your office party catered by a local Mom-and-Pop eatery instead of one of the big chain restaurants. In other words, rediscover the warmth and wonders of your own hometown.

Close your eyes and listen to the music

Music may calm the savage beast, but it can also transport you to a different time or place. Depending upon your mood (and tastes), you can listen to the beat of Funky White Honkies or the Pearly Baker Band (narrowscenter.com), the orchestral movie scores of “Music of James Bond” (spirecenter.org) or the “Magic of Disney: 100 Years of Wonder” (zeiterion.org). Or immerse yourself in the beauty of classical music like Vivaldi’s “The Four Seasons” (riphil.org) or the return of the Christmas Concert at St. Anthony of Padua Church in New Bedford (musicatsaintanthonys.org)!

Try Something Different in the New Year

Instead of doing the same-old, sameold, get out of your rut and try something completely new! Learn how to line dance at the New Bedford’s Kilburn Mills (facebook.com/aandmdanceacademy.com). Enjoy a good laugh (and a buffet dinner) at White’s of Westport to see “The Portuguese Kids – Faz O Relax Christmas Show “(whitesofwestport. com). Or try your hand at pickleball at Fairhaven’s indoor Southcoast Pickleball arena (southcoastpickleball. com). Or get a head start on spring and attend a wokshop on Veggie Garden Design (blithewold.org). Check out the Moby-Dick Marathon, with readers from around the world, at New Bedford’s Whaling Museum (whalingmuseum. org). Or if you’re in a more adventurous mood, sign up for a Seal Watch Boat Ride out of Bowen’s Wharf in Newport with Save The Bay (savebay.org/seals).

Take Care of Yourself

Join in a virtual class in meditation, tai chi, yoga, smoking cessation or hypnosis with the New Bedford Wellness Initiative (facebook.com/newbedfordwellnessinitiative). Attend a “Winter Wellness Workshop” in Middletown (normanbirdsanctuary.org). Or take a “Walk With a Doc” on Saturdays at the Dartmouth Mall (nbewell.org).

And when the partying and all the over-indulgences start getting you down, chill out and go outside. Pretend you’re Robert Frost stopping by a snowy wood. Marvel at how the leafless trees look like etchings, how the nighttime critters have left distinctive footprints in the new snow, how sound travels differently in the cold. Take three deep breaths of frosty air before you head back inside.

Seek sanity (and lower blood pressure) in nature, whether by yourself or with a child. Visit one of the many nature preserves, bird sanctuaries, state parks, or beaches and take a quiet stroll at dawn or dusk (savebuzzrdsbay.org/discover, thetrustees.org, asri.org, massaudubon. org) as often as possible.

May you all find peace and joy in the New Year.

Elizabeth Morse Read is an awardwinning writer, editor and artist who grew up on the South Coast. After 20 years of working in New York City and traveling the world, she came back home with her children and lives in Fairhaven.