The recipe is the same one my grandmother used, and her grandmother before her.

It hit me yesterday morning. I woke up and before I even opened my eyes, I could smell cinnamon and pine needles and something warm that I can't quite name.

There are men who disappear without explanation 🤐. They don't disappear forever, but rather retreat into silence. For them, it's a way to catch their breath 😮‍💨, clear their heads, and get through the day. There's no drama inside them 🚫, no final point, no decision to "end it all."

When a man feels that the expectations of him are too high, resistance kicks in. Even if the woman doesn't demand anything directly❤️

A woman rarely leaves abruptly. More often, she leaves quietly. First, she waits. Then she hopes. Then she explains. Then she stops explaining🤐

A man may be silent not because he's uninterested. Often, he's simply withdrawing into himself. He's tired 😮‍💨 Overwhelmed. He doesn't want to say too much. For him, silence is a pause, not an end 🧠

I second-guessed my own instincts constantly. When something felt wrong, I would search for reasons why I might be being unfair, or too sensitive, or unreasonable. I would try to reinterpret what I saw so that it matched what I wanted to be true.

I did not understand then why she did not just write down the recipe or tell me the measurements. I wanted clear instructions, clear answers.

When I stop trying to fill every empty space with noise or words or activity, something real emerges.

They are mapped with the work I have done, and I cannot tell a false story about myself looking at them.

Everyone around me seems to know what they want, and they talk about it with so much certainty. But when I try to imagine myself five years from now, ten years from now, it all feels so vague and uncertain.

Tonight I'm sitting by the window with a cup of hot mulled wine, and it's dark outside. Christmas is the time when the world becomes magical. The city dresses up in garlands, the air is filled with the scent of tangerines and pine needles, and the heart warms with the thought that somewhere out there, behind these lights, someone is also dreaming of a miracle.

There's something special about these holidays ✨ When the city lights up, the air smells of tangerines 🍊 and cinnamon, and time seems to slow down. On days like these, you realize especially clearly: happiness isn't the scale of events, but who you experience them with 💘

I usually love different holidays, but New Year's is special for me. It has a special atmosphere, all relatives always gather. These are such wonderful moments that cannot be compared with anything.☃️🥰

Why not wanting to celebrate is normal

How to gently enter the new year without pressure and expectations

I love the smell of freshly washed linens. For me, it's more than just a scent-it's a state of mind. It's not harsh, it doesn't shout or demand attention. It quietly envelops you, like a warm blanket, and in that moment, the world becomes a little softer, calmer, and kinder.

I internalized their versions of me and thought that was truth. 😤

Many in Ukraine are increasingly asking the same question: Where is the winter we're used to? There's been almost no snow for about ten years. And if it does fall, it disappears without a trace within a few days - a week at most. Real frosts have become a rarity, and winter is increasingly resembling a prolonged autumn.

Many of us grew up with jokes and unpleasant associations about Chinese products - we often hear that they copy other people's designs (for example, engines from Honda or BMW), that their products are supposedly of low quality and unreliable. And yes, such stereotypes did exist in the past - but the world is changing very quickly now.