Explaining Christmas

How would you explain Christmas to someone who didn’t celebrate?

I was talking with a good friend last week, A good friend despite what religion we profess, and despite how we define football ??, and he asked about Christmas.

Christmas has a certain effect on people.

If there is one word to sum up Christmas, I would say “magical”.

When he asked a smile immediately emerged.?Christmas is my favorite time of the year.?

• The music is angelic.?It can bring smile and tears of joy to just about anyone.?
• The food.?So many desserts and treats.?I easily gain 5 pounds in the month of December, but it is worth it!
• The weather.?I’m in Florida, so we get excited when it drops below 70.?But the weather certainly helps us all get into the holiday mood. White Christmas?
• Family.?It is the one time of year where everyone puts aside their “busyness”, clears their schedule and gets together for a full day filled with laughter and memories.?There is no agenda.?Just came as you are.
• It is the time of year where everyone is a touch happier.?Where we remember what it is like to be human.?Hold doors for one another. Smile at a stranger.?Strike up conversation at the store.?A time of year where we are all a little more giving.?A time of year where we put differences aside.
• Giving.?It’s been proven that giving will improve your mental and physical health. Whether that is of service, your gift or in another form, it will boost your own happiness while helping someone else. It is one of the best ways to fight depression.

https://health.clevelandclinic.org/why-giving-is-good-for-your-health/

• Kids.?Christmas is nothing without kids. Their facial expressions waking up Christmas morning.?The awe, wonderment and joy cement memories forever.?Their excitement in participation all year.?It is their super bowl or world cup ??

Traditions

We talked about traditions.?I told him some of the things my house does.?

The night before Thanksgiving we get our tree.?We decorate inside and out the day after Thanksgiving.?

Christmas Eve is with the extended family.?I have a big family, so we rotate which house will have Christmas that year.?The food is amazing and plentiful. Wear stretch pants!

When the kids were younger they would bake cookies for Santa and put out a glass of milk for him the night before.?They would write a letter to him and sprinkle reindeer food on the front porch.?

It’s the only time of the year I can get Mom to join us in a family game.?We played Among Us the last two years.?Comedy ensues for hours.?

P.S. They always pick/blame me first….a little sus…

They would hear stomping on the roof and bells jingling as they woke up early Christmas morning.

Christmas morning starts off with a big breakfast before we spend the rest of the morning enjoying opening gifts from Santa and one another.?The rest of the day is spent enjoying everything we just opened.?

As everyone gets older, the gifts are more custom and unique.?We spend a lot of time on finding the perfect gifts for one another.?Some times you see the perfect gift for someone in July.?We’ll get it.?It is not about the money spent, but the thought behind it.?We’ll scour the Internet, Etsy, Ali, wherever to find “the gift”.?The surprise on their face is worth every second of it.

This time of year and our professional life

Ok Dale, thanks for the broetry, but this is LinkedIn what’s this have to do with work??

I’m getting there and it’s ironic that you are asking ??

We segued into prayer and meditation.?I joked that fishing is the western version of meditation.?We joked about how Americans are always on the go and rarely take any down time.?I told him that is another reason why I love this time of year.?

It is forced downtime.?

Most business shuts down the last two weeks of the year.?There isn’t much going on.?This allows all of us to focus on what we should be focusing on every day.?Ourselves and our family.?

Christmas is a time for reflection.

He asked if I thought there would be a lot of changes with work after the holidays.?I said yes.

Think about it.?We all set New Year’s Resolutions.?All of a sudden, we know how to eat healthy and have time to go to the gym.?Just like that!?We also make career / work changes.?Why? My theory is that we just had two wonderful weeks off.?We smiled.?We laughed.?We were more patient.?After being forced to be in the moment we realize what is important.?The only thing that changed was, you didn’t work.?Think about it.

So this Christmas, be in the moment.?If work is taking the joy, awe and wonderment away from you, make the change.?

If you are stuck and can’t decide; flip a coin.?Yes! Flip a coin.

https://freakonomics.com/podcast/would-you-let-a-coin-toss-decide-your-future/

If you are doing well then continue with what you are doing, but this year help 1 more person.

We wrapped up our conversation, pun intended, and I asked if he would join us at Christmas dinner this year and he immediately said hell yeah!

So here’s to you brother for the conversation and inspiration for this post.

What are some of your Christmas traditions??What changes will you make this year?