Nov 28, 2022
Enjoy all the best this time of year has to offer with these 11 tips:
1. Choose to notice details:
Take the time to notice how our community has invested in celebrating the season, from individual efforts to organized events.
2. Let joy in:
Sometimes, choosing to notice details requires accepting what we see with an open mind and an accepting spirit, which can be difficult if holidays don’t necessarily spark happiness. Try to find the positive. The holidays may trigger memories of traumatic events or make us wish for loved ones who cannot be in our everyday lives. Recognize your feelings and seek help with a mental health professional if necessary.
3. Focus on others:
There is joy in helping. Volunteer with a local charity, buy a gift or simply be kind when you do not have to, especially when there is no reward for you in doing so.
4. Bring out family items:
Those well-worn family items that make an appearance each year have a way of bringing happiness along with their arrival. Dust them off, decorate and make your space festive.
5. Share a holiday story:
Whether it’s the Christmas Story or the miracle of Chanukah or other stories you love, share your own reason for the season with a child in your family, neighborhood or congregation. Read picture books with favorite fables, too, like “ ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas,” “The Nutcracker,” “The Story of Holly and Ivy” and “Hanukkah Bear.” Try books from other cultures and religions to broaden your family’s horizons.
6. Add music:
Traditional songs, hymns and carols have a way of inspiring happiness. YouTube has veritably every version of common songs a heart could ever desire.
7. Create comfort:
Find what gives you comfort and add more of it in this season. While so much is focused on giving gifts and creating an experience for others, the organizer of all that glitters may need a different kind of gold. Take time out for yourself this month. Make it shine for you, too.
8. Delegate where possible:
There is no prize for the most exhausted parent on Jan. 2. Instead of just getting through the holiday season, make it feasible for yourself. Hire a cleaning service, get gifts wrapped at the store or choose not to attend every event
9. Cook favorite recipes:
Traditional dishes can make an important difference. Prepare what you look forward to each year and share the recipe with someone else.
10. Try something new:
Traditions are a beloved part of the holidays but variety is the spice of life. Choose to spend your time with one new event or activity this year and decide if it should be added to your roster of holiday fun.
11. Find joy in friends and family:
People make the world go round. Leave material worries aside and focus on friends and family. They will likely remember your warmth and happiness more than anything else this year.