MINDFULNESS FOR THE HOLIDAYS
BE HERE NOW
Bringing an attitude of Mindfulness to your Holiday Season
In the frenzy of the holidays it is so easy to go on auto-pilot and miss the experiences that we are running around preparing for. Here are a few tips for lowering the stress and enhancing the joy during this holiday time!
Take a Mindful Moment:
Start your day with a moment of silence. Bring your attention to your breath, connect to your intention for the day ahead and for the holiday season. Think of someone or something that makes you smile, and let that bring a smile to your face. Choose to bring this energy out into your day. When you notice you’ve been pulled back into the mind maze, pause, breathe, and reconnect again.
Engage your Senses:
MMMMMM. So many delicious and sensory rich moments are available at this time of year. Rather than letting them flood you or pass you by, try really engaging all of your senses and challenge yourself to enjoy these brief moments a little more. Drink in the aromas, let your eyes celebrate in the display of lights, taste the sugar cookie like it’s the very first or the very last cookie of your life. Let this year be precious. Before you know it, it will pass, and there will never be a holiday exactly like this one again (for better of for worse).
When we recognize that the phenomenal world is always changing, we can relax...the challenges will pass... and we can savor, the blessings are fleeting too. Don’t let this moment pass you by without first really taking it in.
Practice Compassion:
Be kind! To yourself and to others! Let yourself off the hook, FORGIVE yourself. Choose to bring an attitude of compassion to this holiday time. Everyone is trying their best. Everyone is struggling in their own way, with their own baggage and blind spots. Open your heart and send out a wish that everyone might feel safe and loved this holiday season, that everyone may have enough to eat and a soft place to rest their head.
Place a hand on your heart and state “I forgive myself for not being able to do all that I want to do and I let that expectation go NOW.” Let yourself be perfectly imperfect this holiday season and offer that permission to those around you, it will be a present they will never forget!