There is an expected level of festive, and every year somebody decides they are not going to clear it. The decorations go up late or not all the way up. The cards do not get sent. Somebody asks what you are doing for the holidays and you realize you have not thought about it once.

Merry Enough is on the side of that person. Not because December is bad, but because the season stopped being a gift somewhere around the point it became a performance, and a lot of people are quietly exhausted by the version of it that requires an itinerary.

Enough is the whole argument. One string of lights is a string of lights. One tradition you actually like beats six you are dragging around out of obligation. The people who love you would rather have you present and unhurried than perfectly staged and running on fumes. What is left when you take the pressure out is usually the part you wanted in the first place, which is a handful of warm evenings and a few people you are glad to see.

Do less of it. Enjoy more of it. That is the entire strategy.

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