Hello ~ Hope your Thanksgiving was happy and that you are fondly anticipating whatever the next holiday is that you celebrate or at least the Winter Solstice. Ritual provides continuity and consistency in an increasingly inconsistent world and celebrations can help us feel connected. The ritual does not need to be perfect it just needs to be. The ritual can be playing a board game after the dishes are done. No incense required.
Perfectionism is the enemy of contentment and this is certainly the season where it is easy to be caught up in trying to make the perfect celebration. There are perfect moments, kittens, brownies, basketball shots and sunsets but rarely a completely perfect “thing” which creates happiness beyond what we experience in the moment. We all say “perfect” when something goes well; I am not being a curmudgeon but the anxiety and even sometimes depression which may occur when something does not go “perfectly” is really bad for our health and well being.
This is not a very good time to worry about your diet, exercise routine and what didn’t get done in 2016. It is a really good time to eat good food with pleasure, go for a walk after a nice meal or just because you feel like moving around. Spend time with people you care about and as little time as possible with people who make you feel bad about yourself. We all know what it is like to hear a sentence begin with “you know I love you but” often fueled by too much holiday grog. Excuse yourself and go find some mistletoe to stand under until someone nice comes along who just wants to help you feel good about whom you are. It does not have to be the love of your life or your “soulmate.” Just someone who treats you with respect and kindness. Not too much to ask. If you have some ideas about how you want your life to be better in the New Year tuck them away in a special place inside yourself and enjoy the gift of time and reflection for the next few weeks.
In England they refer to this time of year as the Festive Season which I really like as festive means joyful, lighthearted, cheerful and convivial. So whether it is Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa or Bah Humbug for you I wish you joy and contentment even with all the imperfection life can bring.