to you when you think about Christmas. You might have one word in both columns – family is one that is commonly classed in both the love and hate categories!
Choose one of the things that you hate, but that you can control. Now decide what you will do to minimise it or even eliminate that dislike for you. Now take steps to put your elimination actions into place.
2. Laugh!
Regain your sense of humour about the things that niggle you about Christmas. Laugh at it all. Life was not meant to be taken too seriously, Christmas even less so (with no disrespect to Jesus of course – I’m sure he’d prefer if it we laughed our way though his birthday).
3. Walk in their moccasins Is your mother-in-law driving you mad? Or your father? Or your kids? Or all of them? Take a step back and seek to understand things in their world. Understanding other’s behaviour will not only help you to cope with the behaviour more easily, but when people feel understood and heard, their behaviour can magically improve. Try it.
4. Time out!
If you really can’t fit into their moccasins, take ten minutes and go for a walk. Let the fresh air calm you down and clear your mind. Look at a tree, at a bird, at the sky… think about how small we are in this vast universe and put it into perspective.
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5. Get moving!
In fact, get some fresh air anyway. Go for a walk – exercise helps release those feel-good endorphins, it “clears” your head, helps digest all that stodgy food and is the obvious antidote for “cabin fever” and Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). If you can get the whole family out on Christmas day, so much the better. Even if it’s pouring with rain, force yourself outside. Just think how great and how virtuous you’ll feel when you are back inside – and you will appreciate the warm house much more!
6. Christmas Values Take a moment to think about what Christmas means for you and what messages you want to give to your children. What do you want them to understand about Christmas? What do you want them to learn from Christmas? Take a moment to think about your family values and how you can ensure those values can be practically expressed over the Christmas period. It might mean donating a toy to children in need, enjoying a pantomime as a family, volunteering some of your time for a charity, or simply smiling at everyone who catches your eye whilst you are Christmas shopping.
7. Be selfish in order to be selfless! It’s a truth universally acknowledged that mums make Christmas happen. But that comes at a cost. In order to face Christmas like a Duracell
bunny, you need to charge your own batteries. Set aside some quality time for you over the Festive Season. Mums are notoriously bad at thinking about themselves. Don’t be a martyr this Christmas!
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