A Comforting Christmas Letter for New Yorkers Carrying Heavy Hearts

Dear Friend,

Maybe you lost someone this year. I did too, and if I’m being honest, I’m still pretty numb. Grief has a sneaky way of showing up when you least expect it. Once, I was folding laundry and half-listening to my child go on about Pokémon, one of those long, detailed stories only a kid can tell, when suddenly, I felt it. That ache rising from deep in my stomach until the tears just wouldn’t stop.

Maybe your fear isn’t about loss, but about the future. Maybe everything keeps getting more expensive, but your paycheck hasn’t grown. You lie awake wondering how you’ll keep your family afloat if things don’t change. I know that feeling, the way your heart races when you think about bills, the knot in your gut when you open your bank app. You’re not the only one who feels it.

When Love Ends and You Never Saw It Coming

Maybe you were blindsided by the end of a relationship you thought was strong. It’s a special kind of heartbreak when you realize you were the last to know things were falling apart. It hits hard, doesn’t it? I understand that, too.

When the World Feels Impossible to Trust

Maybe you can’t tell what’s true anymore. The news feels biased, the leaders you’re supposed to trust keep shifting their stories, and you’re left wondering what to believe. I’ve been there- tired, frustrated, and unsure who to trust.

When the Holidays Feel Too Heavy to Handle

Friend, it’s so easy to let all these heavy things stack up until they’re pressing down on you from every side. For years, the holidays crushed me. I smiled through the pain, posted happy photos, told stories about big plans, anything to look like I had it together. But inside, I was drowning in grief, worry, emptiness, and fear.

Finding Hope Again Through Perspective

Things aren’t perfect now, but they’re better. The ache doesn’t hit quite as hard as it used to. I found my footing again by learning one word: perspective. When sadness tried to take over, I started counting blessings, real, simple ones.

The Simple Power of Counting Your Blessings

There’s an old hymn by Johnson Oatman called “Count Your Blessings.” I never really understood it until adulthood, when I was desperate for peace. The song’s message is simple: when life feels unbearable, shift your focus. Think of the good things, even the tiny ones, the birds singing outside your window, a drawer full of socks without holes, the plow that finally cleared your street.

The more blessings you count, the less space you give to the pain. I can’t promise it’ll solve everything, but it might just lighten your load.

Finding Comfort in Life’s Little Things

The next time the sadness creeps in, pause and name the small things that make your heart a little lighter, a warm cup of tea, a good book, a favorite song. Sometimes, it’s the little things that keep us going.

You’re Not Alone in This

I don’t have all the answers, and I can’t promise everything will be okay. What I can promise is that you’re not walking through this alone. You’re seen, you’re cared for, and you matter.

Love,
Traci

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"Are you ever burdened with a load of care? Does the cross seem heavy you are called to bear? Count your many blessings, every doubt will fly, And you will keep singing as the days go by."