Anna, a former client, told me about the first holiday after her divorce, when her children were with their father.  She and her new boyfriend set off optimistically for Florida, where they expected a happy and romantic holiday.

Instead, they encountered the aftermath of a severe freeze.  It had been so cold that the oranges froze on the trees.  Miles upon miles of orange groves were nothing more than bare skeletons of trees, with the reek of rotten oranges filling their nostrils as they drove.  Anna said she never felt so empty, miserable, and despairing.  

It was not a good holiday.  Sometimes holidays aren’t what we hope for, despite our best planning.  The most we can do when that happens is to get through the days, survive them, and move on.  We call that dealing with reality.  They should give an award for it.