Christmas without Dad often hurts most in the jobs he did and the quiet places he filled: the lights, the tree trip, the toast, the coffee he had going before anyone else was up. You don't have to carry every one of his traditions. Pick a few to keep, share or rest for a year, and find small ways to keep him at the table.

You get through the first Christmas without your mom or dad by deciding ahead of time what this year will look like, then planning for the few hardest hours instead of the whole day. It doesn't have to feel like Christmas, and it doesn't even have to be good. It only has to be survivable, and it will be.