This time of year comes with a lot of expectations put upon us by others and by ourselves, on top of everything else we are already mucking through. It reminds me how important it is, especially this time each year, to know ourselves – and how to navigate well – like a train going through the mountains. Looking back at my last trip to Colorado I stumbled across this picture while on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.

Sometimes we are barely inching our train along a narrow cut in the mountain with sharp corners and danger inches away. Other times we stretch out in wide open spaces basked in comfort where nothing stands in our way. And then there’s the times (which for some folks are often) when we go back and forth between these two very quickly or even experience them simultaneously.

What’s important in all of this navigating especially during the holidays, is knowing our limits of what we are and are not capable of at any moment. We’ve got to embrace those limits, name them, own them, and honor them – because they are a key component to who we are.  So this holiday season, I implore you to navigate yourself gently with loving kindness through those tight spaces and in those wide open spaces – in all the spaces you find yourself.  

You are the engineer of your train of life. How do you navigate the tight spaces? How does it feel inside your body? What is it like in the wide open space? Do you honor all those feelings and navigate gently? What can you do just a little bit differently to have a better experience for yourself during the holidays?