How To Have Yourself A Mindful Little Christmas

Christmas: ‘Tis the season of goodwill to which many of us would rather say good riddance. So let’s take a Santa pause for some Christmas counsel inspired by seasonal songs to help you savor the season and have a “you” Christmas, not a Blue Christmas.

I don’t want a lot for Christmas

In this lyric, Minimalist Mariah generously reveals why her smash hit wasn’t called All I Want for Christmas Is Two. If there was a seasonal superpower at this time of year, it could very well be expectation management. It’s so easy to get carried away even more than if we were in Santa’s sleigh rather than just letting what we do have be okay. So affirm the anthem: “I don’t want a lot for Christmas.”

Let Last Christmas be Last Christmas

Leave dragging around the Ghost of Christmas Past to Scrooge. One of the things that can be most difficult about Christmas is that this time of year is such a memory magnet, but the festive flip side is that it’s also a white Christmas canvas for creating new memories. So this year, let’s ensure that there’s some presence under the Christmas tree.

Silent Night (or even Silent Minute)

It’s all too easy to end up as busy as Michael Bublé’s booking agent at this time of year and turn December into a never-ender. Make sure you make some You Time this Yuletide because, when we really think about it, taking deep breaths is more important than having deep pockets.

Celebrate Thismas

If this was an article about mind reading and not mindfulness, I’d be able to tell you that the one song going round and round in people’s heads at this time of year is “I’m dreaming of a Right Christmas.” If we only found it as easy to see the perfect present as we do to shop for the perfect present, we’d all be glowing more than the angel on top of the tree. An anagram of Christmas is “Its Charms” so let’s remind ourselves that our Christmas always has Its Charms, whatever its challenges.

Odd Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen (and Gentlewomen)

Happy Holidays! we run around wishing each other when in reality we may as well say Worried Workingdays! In December, we rarely remember to rest when the very word holiday comes from holy day. So let’s resolve to make resting our religion rather than rushing. Sometimes your most powerful prayer can simply be taking a comfy chair.

Happy XMas (War Is Over)

We can’t make every year a white Christmas, but we can always wave the white flag. Bing Crosby must be the namesake of the Microsoft search engine due to the depth of his knowledge going by his words of wisdom, “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.” Or perhaps that should be “with me and my extended family.” Rather than making our spirit animal Rudeolf the Righteous Reindeer when we find ourselves hurtling towards a festive fallout, let’s just take a moment to remind ourselves that we always have the option to “Let it go, Let it go, Let it go.”

Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time

There’s a lot to learn from McCartney’s Mantra. Let’s all listen to Saint Paul and look to what we can do “simply” this Christmas time. And while we’re at it, we can remember that every single moment can in its own way be seen as wonderful, a word we we all too often forget the literal meaning of: “full of wonder.” To be walking in a winter wonderland, all we have to do is wander in wonder. Let’s leave the mulling to the wine.

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Crisis

When it all gets too much, we can always learn a lesson from our advent calendar and just take December day by day. And when we find ourselves hit by the winter worries, let’s remember that Christmas is a time for faith: it’s O, Come All Ye Faithful not O, Come All Ye Fearful for a reason. Let’s keep the faith and keep committed to being with this Christmas as it is. If we can do that whatever the circumstances, then we open ourselves up to realizing that Joy to the World doesn’t have to be just something the angels sing, it’s something that we ourselves can actually bring.