I’m a procrastinator. I don’t mean to be. It just seems like so many things come up that the things I know I should be doing get pushed off until the very last minute, and that’s why the holidays can lead to a lot of stress for me.
Because I have a huge family, which includes four sisters and their significant others, my husband and child, six nieces and nephews, parents, grandparents, cousins and in-laws who I will be shopping for, I’ve put the task off until the last possible moment. Aside from the odd present that I’ve picked up here or there, I’m basically at square one and Christmas is only seven days away.
The real Christmas anyway. The first of my family’s three Christmases will actually be held this Saturday, and while I only need to provide gifts for three people, that’s still three more than I have shopped for so far. I know there’s a way to get it all done, I’m just not sure exactly how.
In addition to all of the present shopping that has yet to be done, I also have three Christmas dinners to get ready for. Luckily, only one of those dinners will be hosted by me, but since I will be contributing to each one, I have to think of something great to bring to each, and I still have to figure out a way to remind myself I need to take the Christmas turkey out of the freezer before Christmas day.
I’m not complaining. I love the holidays, but as the work piles up, I get more and more stressed out about everything that still needs to be done, and I know I’m not alone.
Last weekend, I took my cousin to the mall so she could pick out the gifts she wanted to give this year. The stores were packed full of the procrastinators just like me. They were like a pack of hungry wolves (or many of the shoppers who were out on Black Friday) but instead of searching for a good deal, they were searching for any good gifts that might be left in the stacks of picked over merchandise.
Those people seemed every bit as stressed out as me. I’ve tried making lists, but as the pages stretch on and on, it only makes me more on edge about all the things that still need to be accomplished, and I give up.
I’m going to say that next year will be different. Next year I’ll start shopping in October and I’ll be done before the stores even set up their displays of Christmas trees and decorations. I’ll say that next year I’ll plan out every dish for my Christmas dinner and everything will go according to plan.
I’m going to say all of those things, but I know it won’t be true. Procrastinating is in my nature. I just hope I remember to thaw the turkey.