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Adjusting to Being Alone During the Holidays by Katie Groom
It can be very tough to be alone during the holiday season. When every ad is centered on family (not to mention that every book and movie set during these times seems to be focused on finding love or reconnecting with family — or both).
Being that I am single and live nearly 1000 miles from my family, I was very worried about how I would handle my first holiday season alone. I had always been close with my family and we had plenty of traditions. And even though I was planning a trip between Thanksgiving and Christmas, it was still going to leave those major days vacant of plans and full of longing for my family.
Leading up to the first major US holiday of the season, I had found myself wondering if I would be longing for the embarrassing Thanksgiving tradition of my mother going around the table and forcing each of us to declare at least one thing that we are thankful for that year. The aim was always for one of us to make her cry with what we said — it was never difficult; our mom has always been emotional, so it would have just taken one of us saying that we were thankful for our family.
What I decided to do for that first Thanksgiving alone was start my own tradition. I decided that I wasn’t going to worry about the big meal, but rather, I was going to do something outside of the home. There was a Van Gogh immersive exhibit that was open. Seeing as I was already a fan of Van Gogh’s work, I decided to partake in that, and it was a wonderful experience! I was actually grateful to have the day off — the job I had at the time was actually the first for me that allowed me to have holidays free. It was the first time that I was actually doing something for me.
From that experience, I decided that, whenever possible, I would take these important days —days that it would be difficult to be alone — and do something that brought me joy. Sometimes it’s been activities such as seeing a movie or cooking my favorite meal or reading a holiday themed book. Other times it’s been serving others a hot meal or spending the entire holiday season buying and wrapping gifts for children that would otherwise not receive them. Other times it was something else entirely.
On one hand, I’ve started to treat these days just like they were any other days of the year, but, in another way, I’ve chosen to create my own traditions. And, if you’re someone that is dreading being alone on the holidays, I recommend that you, too, create some sort of new tradition for yourself, if you can.
Werewolf and professor of literature Hugh spent nearly 200 years to find his soulmate, Zoie, but others betrayed him, working with rivals to take her away in only an instant. Revenge was swift and unsatisfying. More people need to pay for what was stolen from Hugh.
Zoie’s death had been orchestrated by powerful beings in the supernatural world. Exacting revenge will require precision and planning.
Biding his time before acting, Hugh reverts to the patterns that finding true love had disrupted. Walking through life in a fog, he does his best to appear as if he is moving forward, though nothing feels the same.
As Hugh tries to start the next chapter in his life with Rosalie, he is haunted by the memory of Zoie. The literature professor cringes every time he’s reminded that Rosalie doesn’t like to read, but he tells himself that opposites should attract. That Rosalie can patch the hole left in his heart when Zoie died. His revenge will take time, and wallowing in grief won’t help.
Just as Hugh is still focused on revenge, his enemies are still plotting to harm Hugh further. It’s dangerous to oppose a bereaved werewolf, but even werewolves can be hurt.
Katie Groom grew up in rural Pennsylvania, where she received her bachelor’s degree in Business Management from PITT and her master’s in Employment and Labor Relations from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. In 2016, she decided to move to Alabama in order to avoid as much snow as possible (and to advance her career in Human Resources).
When she isn’t working, Katie enjoys reading, writing, jokingly critiquing movies and TV, and campaigning that the plural of moose should be meese. She also loves to take in live music (especially Hanson) and traveling, with the goal of reaching each of the continents. Katie’s favorite pastime, however, is spending time with her beloved Shih tzu, Delta.
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As a Christmas tree farmer’s daughter, I am 
“You can go home again…
