Christmas — all the winter holidays, in fact — are mere days away. The excitement and, yes, anxiety will soon reach the frenzy stage if they haven’t already. Etiquetteer has a few quick tips to make the run up to the Most Wonderful Time of the Year hopefully a little less frenzied.
Expect something to go wrong. A Wise Old Man taught Etiquetteer 20 years ago to expect three things to go wrong, and that’s actually good advice. There is so much striving for the perfect holiday — the perfect meal, the perfect gift, the perfectly decorated home — that any accident or deviation can darken the mood sharply. And unnecessarily. More important than the perfect holiday is knowing how to handle crises calmly, and therefore with Perfect Propriety.* And to do that . . .
Have a backup plan. What do you do if the gift isn’t delivered on time, if the turkey refuses to thaw, if your child or grandchild has a tantrum or a wardrobe malfunction, if a candle accidentally sets the curtains on fire? Brainstorm in advance what might have to be done so you can transition to Plan B if necessary. In these cases they might be apologies or alternate gifts, takeout Chinese food, naptime, and a fire extinguisher.
Be kind to the staff. People get so intently focused on their tasks and errands (and impediments) that they forget to be courteous to cashiers and sales staff. This is not Perfectly Proper. Get off the phone before approaching the cash register (no, really!), remember the Magic Words, and express appreciation for their help. That will go a long way to Making the Season Bright.
Allow extra time. For everything. Especially travel. It’s better to be early than late, and miss your flight.
It might not be the gift you want, and that’s OK. And if it isn’t, keep it to yourself.
Respond kindly. If you celebrate Christmas (or Hanukkah or Kwanzaa) and someone wishes you “Happy holidays!” recognize that that that person is wishing you well and not intentionally minimizing the Holiday of Your Choice.
Etiquetteer wishes you smooth sailing in your final preparations.
*It is a lesson That Mr. Dimmick must relearn almost daily.