by Trista Arney, Staff Writer
It's now official - the 2020 Calgary Stampede will not be held this July. While this is a huge community event that many families in Calgary look forward to, it's also another celebration that we won’t be celebrating together this year. Weddings, birthdays, community events, festivals, and more have had to be put off for now as we come together while staying apart to protect one another.
It is okay to be upset!
It is perfectly okay and normal to be saddened by these cancellations and closures. It's disappointing to have to miss big highlights of the year that you and your children were looking forward to.
We can know rationally that these cancellations are for the best and still grieve their loss. Allow yourself and your children that disappointment. Just because others have it worse or because we can always plan to do things later doesn’t mean you don’t get to be sad!
Talk to your family. Let every member in the family talk about their feelings around the closures, what they will miss, which parts of the celebrations were the most special for them. This is a time we can teach our children (and remind ourselves) how to be flexible. Recognize the emotions, identify the parts that were the most important to you, and see if you can make another plan.
What now?
Depending on the celebration you are missing, it's totally possible to create alternative ways to celebrate! Be flexible and try to figure out the key elements of each celebration, big event or festival.
Make a list of the highlights - if what you really look forward to about your local street festival every year is the food, that's not hard to replicate at home (or order in) with some creativity!
(Deciding not to celebrate is also a totally valid plan! It might be more stressful and upsetting to not have the event just as you remember it and that’s okay, too!)
Here are a couple of examples from my own life and some ways I'm thinking about adapting them this year - with some creativity, I know you'll think up your own ways to make the summer special!
