Two days before Christmas and I’m stressing. Stressing about baking the cookies I haven’t yet baked (the brownies I made yesterday were overlooked and bear a striking resemblance to bricks!), the gifts I haven’t yet wrapped, the flowers not sent, the last minute groceries not yet bought.

With two days to go, you’d think I’ve got plenty of time (sleep? Who needs sleep?!!?), but I’m not sure it is. Why? The standard I’m holding myself to is the one my Mom hit year after year of my growing up. To say Americans ‘know how to do the holidays’ captures part of it, but then imagine Disney was also involved in the production! Every year saw 12 different types of cookies for the ’12 Days of Christmas’, the ‘downstairs tree’ (the fun tree full of ornaments collected and passed down through the family over the years), the ‘upstairs tree’ (the ‘oh isn’t it gorgeous tree’ that no doubt appealed to adults but not to kids on the basis of having all white lights and a definite ordering of very similar ornaments),  trips into ‘the city’ to go shopping and see the ballet (The Nutcracker of course!!), not to mention the lighting of the house and trees (not quite ‘Christmas Vacation’, but not a million miles off either).

To say my childhood Christmas’ were magical is both an understatement and a credit to my Mom. As an adult, I find myself wanting to do as much and ‘measure up’. Then it hit me, much like trying to lift as much as, or complete a WOD as quickly as a Games competitor, I’m judging myself against a standard I’m just not ready to hit. Maybe in time, with more ‘training’ and planning, but not quite yet. For now, I’ll respect my limits and ‘scale accordingly’.

Sometimes life gives me insight into training, sometimes training gives me insight into life.

Wishing each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas!