A Holiday Survival Guide Six Geese A-Laying: The Never-Ending Holiday Ducks

It’s that time of year again—decorations are up, the malls are packed, and your to-do list is growing longer by the day. The holiday season has officially begun. What’s supposed to be a joyful time of celebration and connection often turns into a frantic race to the finish line filled with endless shopping, cooking, family gatherings, and parties. For many women, it feels like a chaotic whirlwind where each day brings more demands, more expectations, and more stress.

As you navigate the holiday season, you may find yourself juggling everything from gift shopping to meal preparation, from hosting relatives to attending holiday events. These tasks, while seemingly small in isolation, add up quickly, creating a level of chaos that can leave you feeling overwhelmed. This is where the “quacking” begins—the constant noise of minor tasks that can distract you from the bigger picture of what the holidays are really about: joy, connection, and meaning.

The Holiday Duck Parade Begins: Gift Shopping, Family Gatherings, and Meal Prep

Let’s start with one of the biggest holiday stressors: gift shopping. Finding the perfect present for everyone on your list can quickly become an all-consuming task. It starts with the best intentions: You want to give meaningful, thoughtful gifts to the people you love. But somewhere between battling the crowds at the mall and scouring online stores for that one specific item, the pressure mounts. What was supposed to be a fun and generous gesture turns into a frantic scavenger hunt. And, of course, finding the perfect gift on a budget is nigh impossible, adding an additional layer of stress. Is this toy good enough for my niece? Will my mother-in-law actually use this kitchen gadget? Should I add a personal touch with custom wrapping paper or hand-written notes? Before you know it, your mind is spinning, consumed by the details of gift-giving.

Then, of course, there’s the family gatherings. Whether you’re hosting a holiday dinner or attending one at a relative’s house, family events are a staple of the season. But they can also be a source of stress. You might find yourself worrying about whether everyone will get along, whether you’ve made enough food, or whether your home looks “holiday ready.” Family dynamics often come with their own set of expectations, and the pressure to make everything perfect can weigh heavily on your shoulders. And as if we don’t have enough going on during the holidays, some years we have politically charged family arguments… uhm… I mean discussions.

And let’s not forget meal prep. Planning, shopping for, and cooking a holiday feast is no small feat. Do I need to prepare an entirely separate meal for the gluten-free cousin and the keto aunt? Whether it’s Christmas dinner, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah celebrations, or any other holiday gathering, the pressure to provide a memorable meal is enormous. The turkey needs to be perfectly roasted, the side dishes timed just right, and the dessert must impress. You’re juggling oven space, keeping an eye on the clock, and trying to keep your cool while Aunt Goose critiques your gravy.

In my family, we have fried turkey. You’ve not lived until you are hosting the whole family, and you have a seasoned, brined raw turkey four hours before dinner. I’ve never prayed so hard as when I baptized that turkey in boiling oil. You can imagine my shouts of hallelujah for the Christmas miracle when that bird was done, crisp, juicy, and golden right in time for dinner. All of these tasks may seem small in isolation, but taken together, they become a tidal wave of anxiety and responsibilities.

The Cumulative Effect: How Small Tasks Add Up to Big Stress

The challenge with these holiday tasks is that they seem minor on their own. Buying one gift, cooking one meal, attending one party—it all sounds manageable. But what makes the holiday season so stressful is the accumulation of these tasks. Each individual responsibility may not seem like a big deal, but when they pile up, they can become overwhelming.

This is where the “quacking” comes in—the endless noise of small, incessant tasks that demand your attention. As each new responsibility pops up, it distracts you from what really matters. Instead of focusing on the joy of the season, you find yourself mentally drained from managing a thousand tiny details. It’s as though you’re being pecked at by a gaggle of geese, each one nibbling away at your energy and attention.

Take decorating, for example. Decorating your home for the holidays can be a fun and festive activity, but it’s easy to get caught up in the details. Do the lights on the tree match the ones outside? Is the wreath on the front door big enough? Should you add more tinsel, or is it too much? Before long, you’re obsessing over every inch of your home, trying to create a picture-perfect holiday scene. The decorations, which should bring joy, have instead become another source of stress.

These seemingly small, everyday tasks slowly accumulate until they take up so much of your mental bandwidth that there’s little room left for anything else. You start to lose sight of why you’re doing all of this in the first place—to celebrate, to practice your faith, to connect, to create memories with the people you love.

The Quacking Takes Over: A Real-Life Holiday Duck Parade

Let me set the scene. It’s a crisp December afternoon in Charlotte, and I’m rushing around, trying to finish my last-minute errands. You know the kind—those final, frantic dashes to pick up wrapping paper, last-minute gifts, or ingredients for the big meal. I was already stressed out, juggling a mental list of everything I still needed to do, when I got stuck in the middle of holiday traffic. If you’ve ever driven in Charlotte during the holidays, you know that the roads can feel like a NASCAR race. I’m on Mallard Creek Road—yes, Mallard Creek Road—when suddenly, traffic grinds to a complete halt. I thought it was a car accident. After a few minutes of bumper-to-bumper standstill, the cars ahead start moving again, and I see the real culprits: a collection of Mallard ducks with ducklings, proudly and methodically marching across all four lanes as if they own the place.

Now, these weren’t your typical holiday birds—they weren’t turkeys or even the proverbial Christmas goose. These were ducks with a mission, and that mission was to remind us all just how little control we actually have over the holiday madness. Here we were, a bunch of harried humans, stopped dead in our tracks by a bunch of determined waterfowl. And the best part? The notoriously impatient drivers around me—who usually approach speed limits like mere suggestions—actually waited. No honking, no swerving, just a collective pause to let these ducks take their sweet time. And the ducks were just waddling along, oblivious to the chaos around them.

As I sat there watching these ducks waddle their way to wherever ducks go, I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. I also couldn’t help but think about how perfectly this moment encapsulated the essence of the holiday season—one part joy, two parts chaos, with a dash of unexpected surprises. Sometimes, ducks really can be a good thing. And no, not just with mint sauce.

Once the ducks safely made it to the other side, the race resumed—drivers zoomed off, and I went back to my errands. But that brief encounter with those holiday ducks stayed with me. It was a reminder that sometimes, we need to let go of the hustle and just enjoy the moment, even if it’s forced upon us by a parade of actual ducks.

Distractions Steal the Joy: The Perfect Gift and the Ideal Christmas Card

One of the biggest holiday stressors is the pursuit of perfection. We’re often chasing the idea of the “perfect” holiday—the perfect meal, the perfect decorations, the perfect gift. But this pursuit can consume so much of our mental energy that we lose sight of what’s really important.

Take the example of finding the perfect gift. It’s easy to get caught up in the idea that you need to buy something special for everyone on your list. You spend hours online comparing prices, reading reviews, and second-guessing your choices. What if they don’t like it? What if it’s not personal enough? Before long, what should be a thoughtful gesture becomes a source of anxiety. The pressure to get it right can be overwhelming, and instead of feeling excited about giving, you’re stressed about whether you’ve done enough.

Then there’s the Christmas card—the hallmark of holiday perfection. Whether it’s picking out the right design or planning the perfect family photo, the pressure to send out an ideal holiday card can be intense. Maybe you’re debating whether to go for a funny card, a classic one, or something that perfectly captures your family’s holiday spirit. You spend hours coordinating outfits for the family photo, only for the kids to melt down during the photo shoot or for your dog to refuse to cooperate. The result? Another source of holiday stress, all for the sake of creating a flawless holiday moment.

But here’s the thing: The perfect gift, the perfect card, the perfect anything isn’t what makes the holidays meaningful. In fact, the pursuit of perfection can often distract you from the very things that matter most—connection, love, and shared experiences.

The holiday season, with all its joy and beauty, can also bring a lot of pressure, and it’s easy to get caught up in the quack of holiday chaos. But the good news is, there’s a way to manage it. You can learn to quiet the quacking and focus on what really matters.

May Your Holidays be Merry,

Rochelle Brandon, MD

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