Christmas in April

I recently got some great stories from Jodi, who is a long distance musher in Alaska (among other sports). If you're wondering, it has nothing to do with making baby food. Far from it. Mushing is the sport of running a dog team across miles and miles (and miles and miles) of snow and ice. The Iditarod is perhaps the most famous of these races, for which, by the way, you have to have done more than 3 sanctioned events in the last 2 years, totaling more than 750 miles. That's just a lot of mushing. Days and nights in a row of running-resting-running-resting with your dogs, never mind the sub-zero temperature, wind and other weather. As Jodi says, "there have been some times when after doing something really really hard I have felt like I could eat impossible for breakfast!" You know, I think that sounds like an even better breakfast than my yogurt with nuts and dried fruit.

As you might have guessed, training and competing in mushing is a winter sport. Last year Jodi was so busy with her dogs and racing, she decided that she simply did not have time for Christmas. She sent out an email to family and friends that she'd decided to celebrate Christmas in April, when she'd have the time and energy to enjoy it, which she did. And why not? There's not much going on in April, so what a nice moment to suddenly get together for a nice meal and maybe exchange a few presents.

Is Jodi obsessed? Has she lost balance in her life? Not unless you think Christmas is more important than doing something you love. Obsession is in the eye of the beholder. Maybe to prioritize Christmas is obsessive. I don't know the answer. We should all choose what's balanced for us. And we know we've made the right choices when we're happy.

On that note--happy holidays to everyone, whatever you celebrate and whenever you celebrate!