MDC Blog
Life is more than sales and logos.
Our inspiration –
Marie Dawn Connors
17.04.19320 – 01.02.2019
Always loved. Always missed.
People Are Hurting Let's Be Kind
Christmas is a time when every form of media is pushing family and connectivity. It means a great deal to us to come together. There are those, however, who are either alone or feel alone. At some point in our lives this will be us. We can even be with many people yet feel lonelier than if we were by ourselves. Perhaps we have lost someone or something that we thought made us who we are. Sometimes we just can’t connect. We don’t always feel comfortable around others.
If we feel this way, we need to remind ourselves that we can go through the motions and if, occasionally, we find ourselves laughing or even enjoying the spirit of the season, it’s OK. It doesn’t mean we are forgetting or leaving anybody behind. It just means that for a brief time we experienced an emotion that is also a part of life. Allow yourself that brief respite. It’s your right. You’ve lived long enough to know your rights and happiness is one of them.
Joy belongs to everyone. It is ours to claim, to accept, when it comes by haphazardly skipping into our heart. When Yuletide happiness lights, fleetingly, on our soul to dance, don’t try to capture it or hold onto it. Allow it to be what it wants to be. The harder we try to control it the less control we will have. Like a star that appears brighter in the corner of our eye and fades when we look right at it.
There will be those among us who feel this way. Allow them the space to join in at their pace but reassure them that they are welcome. We can reserve judgement or at the very least, question our own impulse to comment. People are hurting in the holiday season. Let’s be kind.
Not Just Christmas
Certainly, in the US there are many Holidays this time of year. It is, after all, the ‘Holiday Season’. But Christmas has its unique atmosphere. In the UK, Europe and Canada Christmas is a magical time and while the Northern Hemisphere cools and becomes white with snow, too much sometimes, the Southern Hemisphere heads in Summer and beach weather. But everywhere you begin to notice the scents, colours and emotions you had left behind for a year.
The fruit is different and the smell and type of food changes. These changes trigger emotions and memories, some distant, some recent. Perhaps you long for a time past when things seemed simpler, even easier, or you are looking forward to new life, new memories to create and savour. Allow the spirit of Christmas to work its magic on you and it will ingrain the Yuletide traditions with new memories. Allow yourself the gift of the season.
You know how to do Christmas. Of course, we at MDC would love to help but you’ve got it under control.
Merry Christmas
You don’t get invited to Christmas. You walk through the wonderland that is the spirit and the anticipation of good will. It surrounds you, wraps you up, and holds you tight. You absorb it. Even in the Southern Hemisphere, yes there’s a Southern Hemisphere, where it’s summer, the Yuletide winter themes and motifs surround you and the coolest you get is either going for a swim or walking around the shopping centre air-conditioning. Roasts are being replaced by sea food, but it demonstrates the important role, tradition and nostalgia play in our lives. Even the most cynical among us find a way to fit the Christmas spirit into their world view.
Many of us are struggling. Life is like that. We keep going through the changing seasons finding hope and connection where we can. Some of us are just looking for others to share our compassion and love with. We have so much of it, and we need to let it out or we’ll burst. We want to share the spirit of good will with friends, family and strangers alike. It is a time for good deeds, neighbourly compassion and acceptance.
As much as Christmas is about kids, it’s about grown-ups too. It’s a time to relive good times and create new memories and traditions. The best traditions grow organically and survive on their own. If it’s contrived or fabricated, then it won’t last. Keep what works and let the rest go. Despite the ready supply of motifs, there is no template for Christmas. No hard and fast rules. So, when the tree looks right and the decorations are hung, all the shopping and wrapping is done, celebrate the best way you know how.
You don’t get invited to Christmas, you volunteer.