Our First Christmas (Not Home)
Don’t Get Stuck (unless it’s Acupuncture)
I know, I know my humor is bad.
Stick with me, here.
Sorry, moving on. We all get stuck…
Stuck in the movie inside our minds
of how “it” should be.
Whatever “it” happens to be at the time.
Canceled Flights
Remember all the canceled flights in December 2022 over the Christmas holiday?
It affected most of us.
Some of us could not get a flight out.
Some of us could not see our loved ones.
Our First Christmas
My husband Mark and I looked forward to traveling home to see our family together for our first Christmas as newlyweds.
After the fifth flight delay
came the final flight cancellation.
We had to call and say I’ll (Not) be home for Christmas.
It was our first Christmas and we were pretty upset about not being able to see our family, especially our kids.
Finding Peace
We decided after calling family and feeling really bummed out that we would make the best of our first Christmas together- alone.
”Accepting what is” proved important in keeping our stress down and our moods up.
We can all get caught-up in our expectations of how life “should be.”
Acupuncture, Meditation and a Healthy lifestyle with appropriate movement and food can help us to get un-stuck more often.
Well, with acupuncture you get stuck, then un-stuck. Okay, okay. Moving on…
New Traditions out of Old
We had a lot of fun playing games, singing, talking and cooking delicious food together!
Silver lining: More time to get to know each other’s holiday traditions!…
We learned each other’s food/ celebration traditions and the ethnic roots of these for Christmas and New Years Eve and day.
We came up with our own traditions, including baking our (still) favorite cake. It’s the BEST apple and walnut cake. We only revised it a few times. We prepare it for family and they love it, too.
Feeling Love
We all have an “apple cake” that makes us happy just thinking about it.
Memories of preparing it, smelling it, tasting it, but most of all sharing it.
Sharing our hearts with our favorite people is the essence of love.
Food is just one way to bridge that connection.
We can all find ways to stay connected, even when apart.
Stay in Touch
Let’s continue finding ways to connect.
If you are an ex-patient of mine,
Reach out if you would like to meet for coffee when we are in MN or call for a chat sometime.
Feel better, Move forward, Stay in Touch…
Written by Aleesha D Kaplan, LAc
Aleesha Kaplan is a certified and state licensed acupuncturist with a Masters degree in acupuncture. She holds a Bachelor’s degree from Hamline University. Aleesha specializes in helping others find relief of pain and suffering.
After a severe auto accident from high school, she experienced severe, constant pain for 17 years.
Though recovered from chronic pain, this rich experience allowed Aleesha the ability to empathize with others in pain. She remains focused on relieving the pain and suffering of others.



