UNITED STATES—It is hard to fathom this, but in about a month the biggest food holiday of the year, Thanksgiving will be upon us. Yes, it feels like the month of October is moving at a feverish speed and I find it so amazing that time sometimes flies when you least expect it. So with Halloween certain to be here before you can snap your fingers, have you gotten your costume? If not you might want to get on that ASAP because if you plan to wait a few days before the big holiday you will be disappointed.
Back to Thanksgiving and the ever-impending Christmas holidays, are you planning? Are you cooking, dining out, and visiting family for Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is always a tough one for many people because it focuses a lot on family and if you have lost loved ones or there is conflict with family it is hard to manage emotions sometimes around that holiday.
In addition, you have many people who don’t have a lot around this day that is centered on food, but it is more focal about being thankful for things you have in your life. A lot of us don’t actually do that. We worry about what we don’t have instead of reflecting on what we do have. I do appreciate this time of year because it does force people to be a bit more giving with their heart. You donate more, you see people being a bit more courteous and doing their best to help those in need and thinking more about others versus themselves.
It may start with Thanksgiving, but that giving feeling stretches into Christmas which I think is so important. I do want to point out we all get too commercially involved when it comes to Christmas. We spend so much time and money on gifts not realizing the price of something doesn’t matter it is the thought that is key. I personally love the holiday because I am a giver by heart and I do sometimes go a bit overboard when it comes to giving out gifts and I stress myself out at times, and I hope I can change that in 2023.
I don’t want to be consumed with the idea of what I spent and how much I spent, and just giving to give because it makes me feel good and I prefer to see a smile on someone else’s face. Someone else being happy makes me feel happy. Also I just love the festive energy that Christmas brings to so many Americans. Decorating the home, putting lights up outside, just the cheer that people tend to have around the holidays is so great and it warms your heart. It doesn’t heart that you have those fuzzy movies that play on Cable TV throughout the months of November and December.
The key about the holidays is to attempt to enjoy them the best you can without stressing yourself out. A big concern for so many people is money and it shouldn’t be. I get it when you have a family and you’re trying to ensure it’s the best holiday for all involved, you sometimes have those moments where you want to do more, but the reality is you can only do what you can do.
There are some individuals who wish they could do a tinge of what you’re doing for your family, and don’t come close, and that is the point we miss. Going bigger is not always better. It’s not what you do sometimes; it is just spending time with the people in your life that matter most. Try to focus on the good, stay positive and just know you can only do what you can do, everything else doesn’t matter.
Written By Jason Jones
