Christmas, what a wonderful, magical time of year.

As humans, at Christmas, it is so easy to get wrapped up in the hustle and bustle, the sales, making sure we get something for everyone on our list, the cooking & baking, spending more money and time than we really have to spend, just to try and please everyone.  We want to do and give the best we can. In my experience, putting that much pressure on ourselves, only leads to stress, worry, doubt, and doesn’t leave a lot of room to just be peaceful and enjoy the true spirit of the season.

In all honesty, Christmas is not really about any of that.  It’s not about driving ourselves crazy and putting ourselves in a financial hole than can take us month’s and sometimes years to get out of, to try and create the best commercialized Christmas we can.

Christmas is about heart and soul, it’s about showing our appreciation and gratitude, it’s about love, family and spending time together, being grateful and appreciative of the people that care for us, and help us all year long to be the best us we can be.  It’s about giving of yourself, and your time.  It’s about acts of random kindness towards our fellow human beings.

The holiday season, is about doing something for someone in need.  It’s about the child that collects cans to pay for material, so he and his mom can make blankets for the sick and homeless.  It’s about the little girl who loves to sing and entertains the elderly, to brighten their day.  The little boy that wants to send teddy bears to comfort other children that have survived a devastating earthquake in another part of the world, it’s about  the kids that don’t want any presents for themselves, instead they only want to buy school supplies for children less fortunate than they are, even using their own hard earned money to do it, and asking for nothing in return.

Christmas is about the Secret Santa who hands out $100 dollar bills to random people on the street in the hopes of helping them out and just brightening their day.  It’s about the generosity of giving and helping those that may be less fortunate than we are. It’s about setting aside our differences and seeing people as humans, equipped with gifts and flaws, just like ourselves.  This is the Core of the Christmas season, the real meaning, the real spirit of this holiday.

As this wondrous holiday is fast approaching, my Christmas wish for all of us is that we will open our hearts, minds and souls, be present in the moment, to really see and feel the needs of others, and try to fulfill just one Christmas wish for someone who needs it more than we do ourselves.

The feeling of seeing the surprise, joy and appreciation on the face of a stranger can be very powerful food for our own souls, it’s a feeling that we will carry all year through, a feeling we can draw from in our own times of sorrow and need, and an act that will be returned to us when we need it the most.

Wishing a Merry Christmas, filled with Peace, Joy and Happiness to you and all of our fellow humans!