There is nothing quite as restorative as the smell of fresh-baked ginger snaps. So, on Saturday, instead of spending hours at a keyboard crafting some amazing new service, I baked.

Measured the ingredients. Creamed the shortening and sugar. Mixed in the molasses, spices, and flour.

Popped the first tray into the oven and marveled as my home filled with the smells of the holidays.

In that simple ritual, I found the ideal antidote for the hurly burly of the last few months.

The Mendacity of “Then” or Another Lie We Tell Ourselves

No, this isn’t a post about baking cookies. My ginger snaps are good, but they’re not that good,

Well, unless you pair one with a hot mug of tea on a grey wintry day on one of the shortest days of the year. And a book. Under a blanket….

Please pardon for the digression.

This is a post about listening to your body, to your heart, and to the signals you’re receiving. Whether you’ve been pushing through a rough patch at work, or maybe you’re trying to build something new—he typed looking into the mirror—the pressures can be intense.

We tell ourselves that after this week or after this month or, hey, maybe next year things will slow down. Then I’ll be able to pause. Then I’ll rest. Then.

But because we have no tougher taskmaster than the voice which lives rent free in our heads, “then” never comes. It’s always smothered by the next great idea. Epiphanies murder mindfulness, and off we race to chase the next jolt of dopamine.

Instead, we can choose another way. We can choose now.

A More Peaceful Approach

Instead of leaning into the next task or challenge, we can lean back. We can consider how we really want to spend the next half hour or maybe even just the next 30 seconds.

Maybe stop and focus intently on chewing a ginger snap. The crack as you take a bite. The bright cinammon, clove, and ginger on the front of the tongue. The chunks breaking noisily into smaller crumbs. The dark, tangy molasses sweetness coating the mouth.

Or we can rest. We can give ourselves permission to pause in peace.

That’s what I’ll be doing after Christmas. As this fantastic year winds down, I’ll disconnect for at least a couple of days to follow some sage advice from a friend, Iris van Ooyen.

She wrote this in her recent blog post:

“…What I want for you is to make a change before you run yourself ragged, before you’ve pushed your body or relationships beyond repair, before you hit that wall and lose yourself entirely….”

If that resonates with you, she has much more to say on the topic. Check her out.

Thank You

The year can’t end without me saying a hearty thanks for reading me this year. This is my 50th post of 2025, this Year of Persistence. I hope you’ve gleaned as many insights and ideas from them as I did when writing them.

And an even warmer thanks to the many of you who took the time to share your feedback about what you read. Those comments brightened my day and put fresh wind in my sail for the next article or service idea.

I wish you a peaceful holiday season. See you back here very soon.