Gold

Dec 5, 2024

When my daughter Ella was 4, she went through a Glitter Phase. Glitter was everywhere: in the carpet, the car, her hair. "It's so pretty," she said. "See how the couch sparkles? It's like magic."

As you can imagine, I did not share Ella's enthusiasm. My choices seemed to be: A) Take away the glitter entirely until she was old enough not to make a mess; B) Not let her move on from a glittering binge until she cleaned it up; C) Remind her  that others who might not like glitter as she did were sharing her space; or D) Enjoy her exuberance and quietly clean up when it got too much.

I opted for Choice D. After all, I reflected, your bliss is what makes you YOU; when you stomp on someone's bliss, even unintentionally, you’re stomping on a part of them. Glitter was Ella’s joy. It wasn’t hurting anyone, it was just inconvenient. It took time to reframe my thinking to where instead of seeing glitter, I saw Ella... but it made life better for everyone.

It seems like about half the population enters a Glitter Phase each year, starting mid-October and peaking on December 25th. Honestly, I fall into the other half: To me, Glitter Phase feels more like a chore than a pleasure. In my case, that's likely because here at KOAA we spend August through November helping local businesses plan their holiday outreach; by the time the holidays actually arrive, it can all feel anticlimactic.

Thankfully, I have colleagues whose holiday spirit remains undiminished. It’s their bliss. They greet the first snowflakes with joy, not groans. By mid-November, the office is decorated. They wear reindeer headbands. Everywhere I look these days, what I see is... glitter.

And it's pure gold.

—Deb