My youngest daughter Janey has been surreptitiously gathering copies of the Argos catalogue, WHSmith catalogues etc since September. She spends months going through them, cutting out the toys she wants and sticking them onto a giant scrap book, ready to present to Father Christmas. Not a day goes past without her saying “…for Christmas, I really want…” and when she’s said that enough she says “…for my birthday, I want….”
I risk coming across as a real Bah Humbug in this post, but trust me, I really do love Christmas, I just wish it didn’t take up ¼ of the year these days.
I really love the autumn. It is a very productive time, when school is in full flow and I can settle into a bit of a routine in my work and I do seem to get a lot done. But in recent years, the C word interferes earlier and earlier. No, not the swearing C word, but Christmas.
In the Autumn we have some lovely festivals to look forward to. My birthday 🙂 Harvest festival and the autumn equinox. Then Halloween and Fireworks. All mark the year and provide us with an opportunity to come together, celebrate, to dress up, make fun food and play games. So why do we taint this vibrant time and the natural flow of autumn which yearns for us to slow down and snuggle up, by dragging Christmas earlier and earlier? Autumn has enough to entertain us – we need not be bored.
In our rush to buy “presents” for Christmas, we are in danger of missing the real “present” – the gift of the immediate hour or day we are experiencing. It feels like in searching and planning for the pleasure and excitement of Christmas, we miss out on the pleasure and excitement of all the other things which happen in the months before. And this adrenaline rush to shop, buy and wrap, often just increases our stress levels.
There is a practice called Mindfulness, which is becoming increasingly popular and well known. It comes from eastern philosophies and is recognised as one of the keys to happiness and reducing anxiety and depression. Mindfulness asks us to be very present to each moment. To notice what is going on in each tiny snippet of time. Noticing what we can smell, taste, hear, feel and see, takes our mind away from unhelpful things like being self critical or anxious. It also seems to slow time down, giving us greater space and time to breath and enjoy things.
I’m not suggesting that you all rush out and join a Mindfulness class or even buy a book on Mindfulness, of which there are many. I am simply asking you to consider whether life is better, when we rush through it, pulling Christmas plans into October or earlier. Actually, it has never been quicker or easier to buy gifts for people. I could go on the internet and order most things in a couple of hours – there really is no need to start planning earlier and earlier.
It’s probably a bit late for me to suggest you try quarantining Christmas this year. I imagine that many of you are already fully engaged in the process. I certainly seem to find many people telling me that they will contact me after Christmas or arrange something in the new year (and its not because they are avoiding me honest!)
But it is still November, for at least another few days. I challenge you to try the following until it turns December:
- Notice how the days are getting shorter and darker. Notice each day, what time it gets dark. Enjoy snuggling in your home as it gets colder outside.
- Notice the trees changing.
- Notice how different it smells outdoors… more peaty, a bit damp..a bit cold (yes you can smell cold)
- Notice whether you want to eat differently as it gets colder and darker
- Enjoy the events and activities that you have over the coming weeks. Savour them….
- and I invite you to resist doing anything Christmas related until December (unless its crucial!)
Life is a gift – that’s why we call it the present, so slow it down and resist speeding it up.