It’s coming— the end. By 5pm darkness surrounds us. Out in the world, shoppers whip into pepper-spraying frenzies. As we pass yellow lights of living rooms and kitchens, Vince Gauraldi and Nat King Cole, muffled by closed windows, gently nudge us with the season’s nostalgia. The crinkling of chocolate wrappers becomes an hourly occurrence. The cold sets in.

It’s time to start wrapping up the year.

Don’t plan on making plans just yet, but now and then take a breath to pause and reflect. Try asking yourself:

Is there something that made me proud this past year?

When it comes to mind, write it on a scrap of paper, and slip it into a drawer.

Throughout this coming week, as you wrap presents, prepare for parties, or cuddle up with a movie and a cup of tea, allow yourself another brief visit into the past.

What embarrassed me?

If you remember something from the past year that makes you wince with embarrassment, make a note of it. Write it down. Slip it into the drawer. Let that small recording hold the weight of your shame, and get back to whatever you were doing.

As the next few weeks draw this year to a close, from time to time, wonder:

What made me so happy last year?

What did I do that I hope to never do again?

What made last year unlike any other year?

Write them down. Slip them into the drawer. Let them lie. That was last year. Be ready to let it go.

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