There's good evidence that conflict avoidance takes a toll on our mental health. It's "eat the frog" all over again - do the hard thing so the hard thing isn't looming.
Judgment is very often rooted in fear: fear of being wrong and fear of the unknown. Curiosity is rooted in confidence, a willingness to be learn, to be a student, to make mistakes, adjust and move forward discovering new people and ideas.
One of the challenging things about the holidays is that they're "supposed" the be joyful. Be happy, be merry, enjoy your family - and if you don't, you must be doing it wrong. But families can be challenging and grief can be relentless at the holidays especially.