“I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach!”
Charles Dickens, English Writer & Social Critic
The alphabets C H R I S T M A S that comprise Christmas stands for so many important and time tested lessons that remain pertinent to us always, through our lives. Chronicling them just as a reminder for ourselves.
C: Collaborate, Communicate and Connect with people to help your dreams take wings and aid theirs as well. It is the spirit of sharing and caring for others that comes from Christmas that applies to our lives in general as well. The beauty of success and accomplishments lies when others win along with you.
“There are those who give with joy, and that joy is their reward”.
Kahlil Gibran, Lebanese-American writer, poet and visual artist
H: Aim for higher thoughts, aspirations, and ideas as that is the need of the hour, letting go of petty infighting, unwanted arguments and being at logger heads. Christmas teaches us to turn within and be at peace with ourselves and with the world.
Into this climate of fear and apprehension, Christmas enters, Streaming lights of joy, ringing bells of hope. And singing carols of forgiveness high up in the bright air. The world is encouraged to come away from rancor, come the way of friendship.” Maya Angelou, American Poet
R: Reflect on our lives and let go of annoying habits and behaviours and December is a golden opportunity to renew ourselves for the next year. Every new year lies in front of us like a gift waiting to be unwrapped, and Christmas teaches us to enjoy giving and receiving gifts.
“There is no ideal Christmas; only the one Christmas you decide to make as a reflection of your values, desires, affections, traditions.” Bill McKibben. American environmentalist
I: Improve ourselves by way of skills, behaviours or competencies can help make us more productive and purposeful. Christmas is a season of reflection and introspection, while being with loved ones also calls for frank dialogues to truly understand where we stand and what we need to improve upon is best heard from family.
” Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home.” Edith Sitwell, British Poet
S: The power of silence can teach us wonderful lessons about ourselves, for we are all consumed by the mind chatter through the year. Christmas is a good time for unwinding and listening to our inner voices and to know what we want out of our lives.
“The holiest of holidays are those kept by ourselves in silence and apart; The secret anniversaries of the heart,” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, American Poet
T: Trial with things without being afraid of being innovative. Don’t we bring out our creative best while designing creative gifts during Christmas? Likewise, adopting an attitude of trying new things that life offers can keep us young and curious.
“There’s nothing sadder in this world than to awake Christmas morning and not be a child” Erma Bombeck, American Humourist
M: Make merry, and best is to enjoy every day of your life. Change the job that bores you, change that city that stifles you, change the relationships that do not respect you, let go of anything that does not give joy. Take time to laugh heartily and Christmas is the best time for it.
“A holiday isn’t a holiday, without plenty of freedom and fun.”Louisa May Alcott, American Novelist
A: Be affable and kind to all, 2020 has taught us more valuable lessons than any other. Is it not a joy to know that people enjoy talking to you and seek you out to share their worries? If there is one life that we have touched by our kindness, then that is the biggest achievement of all. And the essence of Christmas is compassion.
“For somehow, not only for Christmas, but all the long year through, the joy that you give to others is the joy that comes back to you.” Margaret Elizabeth Sangster, American poet, author, and editor
S: Enjoy your solitude as much as you love being with friends and family. Silence, smile, and solitude are gifts from heaven that fall into our laps. They teach us invaluable life lessons that can make a big impact on our lives and that of others.
In your hurry to keep Christmas, you have forgotten Chrsitmas. The truest gift of Christmas is the gift of self. Richard Paul Evans, American Author
