If This Year Went Too Fast, The Fault Is In The Planets

Every December, I am reminded once again that I come from a country where Christmas is not part of our cultural calendar. In Iran, we follow a solar calendar that begins in spring, not winter. Our New Year, Nowruz, arrives with blossoming flowers, warmer days, and the promise of renewal. It makes intuitive sense: the Earth wakes up, and so do we.

So even after all these years of living outside Iran, I still cannot quite get used to the idea of celebrating the start of a New Year in the coldest, darkest moment of winter. My body insists, “This cannot be the beginning!”

But ironically, when I lived in Iran, where I was not expected to care about Christmas, I was forced to care. Why?

Because the rest of the world shuts down.

Which means:

• application deadlines have moved earlier 
• research funders disappear for two weeks
• collaborators vanish into holiday mode
• offices send out-of-office replies

And as if that wasn’t enough, only two months later, another wave of deadlines arrived, right when Iranians were preparing for Nowruz.

So I lived in a double-deadline universe.

But then, as an astronomer, I realized something comforting:

This is all Earth’s fault.

And strangely…
Earth deserves some credit.

On Mercury: deadline panic, every 88 days

Imagine living on Mercury.
A full year is only 88 days long.

Which means:

four grant/tax cycles 

constant “end-of-year” reflections and resolutions

Honestly, Mercury sounds like a cosmic nightmare.

On Saturn: great view, terrible timing

Then there is Saturn; majestic, stunning, photogenic.
If I lived there, I would wake up every morning to an Instagram-worthy sky filled with golden rings.

But a Saturnian year is 29 Earth years. 

Which means:

waiting nearly three decades just to say, 

“Happy New Year! How have you been since… 1997?”

The rings might be beautiful,
but waiting 29 years for a holiday would test even the most patient among us.

On Earth: a perfectly imperfect compromise

And so, despite all my complaints that
the winter holidays that feel upside down,
the double sets of deadlines,
the confusion of trying to celebrate in one calendar while living in another,
I have to admit something.

Earth sits in exactly the right place

Close enough to the Sun to avoid freezing,
far enough to avoid burning,
tilted enough to give us seasons,
and spinning at just the right pace to make a year …

not too fast

not too slow

just right

So this Christmas…

Whether you feel the year has rushed past you or dragged on endlessly,
whether you celebrate Christmas or Nowruz or something entirely your own;

Just remember:

On a cosmic scale, Earth has given us the best possible calendar for both living and dreaming.

And enjoy the holidays, however and whenever they arrive for you.

And if you ever feel overwhelmed by deadlines, just be grateful you don’t live on Mercury.