By Jack Bourassa
The secret to enjoying happy holidays this season is to live in the moment. It’s a simple concept: don’t get caught up thinking about the past or worrying about the future. Let’s get ready for the holidays with this mindset. I also want to suggest some actions that will consciously contribute to making our holidays happier.
Be grateful
It’s not hard to find people, events and things in the present that make us grateful. Be grateful to yourself too. You made it to the end of the year and now it’s time to rejuvenate and recharge. Be grateful to the people in your life: family, loved ones, friends, co-workers and members of your community. Let them know how much you appreciate them. They will be happy with your kind thoughtful words and this will help them in celebrating the season with cheerful spirit. Kind words and actions will warm the cold winter.
Ignore your smartphone
Emails, social media, texts, etc. are all distractions during the family reunion or time spent with friends’ in the upcoming days. Would you rather enjoy and cherish the time with loved ones or care about your social media newsfeed?
Remember that you have the right to disconnect. If there is no urgency to check your phone during those couple of hours when you’re having family dinner, then don’t. Your loved ones will appreciate you being present with them— physically and emotionally.
Start with yourself and remind others that you’ll appreciate them being present at the dinner table.
Enjoy a season of holidays
Whether you’re celebrating Christmas, Hanukah, Yuletide or any other holiday, appreciate diversity and inhale in all the joys surrounding this spectacular season. Diversity enriches our communities. While what each individual or group celebrate might be different, there are important shared themes that bring everyone together: kindness, caring for one another, giving back to communities, positive energy and joy. Regardless of what you’re celebrating, I want you and everyone in our communities to have happy and merry holidays. Say the greeting that’s relevant and people will appreciate it.
Have a conversation that lead to a real change
There are issues that affect our communities. This is the right time to have conversations on how to bring real positive change. For instance, are you involved in any social justice campaign? Tell your family and friends about it. Don’t shy away from bringing this up at the dinner table.
Find a social justice issue that will bring unity. For instance, combating poverty is something that must be of interest to people across the political spectrum. What actions can you take to combat poverty? What actions are you taking? If you want your family and friends to join you in taking action, then pitch the idea to them. Choose doable actions that give everyone the opportunity to
participate. This way you’ll have more family members and friends joining your cause— the more, the merrier.
New Year’s resolutions
We have only a few days until the New Year. It’s always good to have goals without worrying too much about the future. Set doable New Year’s resolutions that focus on personal growth and giving back to your community. Self-care, paying better attention to our mental and physical health, must be the centre of all our resolutions. Resolutions that focus on the wellbeing of our families, communities and workplaces around self-care are always worthwhile. What can we do together to give back to our communities? I’m a fan of collective actions because it means that we will work together and be in solidarity with one another.
Don’t forget
To have fun and be safe!
I wish you all a Happy & Safe Holiday and Best Wishes for the New Year.
This column appeared in the Yellowknifer on December 18, 2019