The Thought Creator
Sally Phillips
Kind I Courageous I Purpose Driven I Thoughtful I Team Player I Leads Wholeheartedly | Animal Lover I Change Maker
Welcome to the sixth edition of The Thought Creator, and my last for 2023!
My aim is to create a space where you can take a mindful moment to be inspired. In a world moving at considerable pace, I hope to provide you with an opportunity to take five, make a cuppa, sit, read, and create a thought. Where you take that thought will be up to you, I'll just be planting the seed.
In today's issue I share some Christmas reflections!
For many people Christmas is a time of joy; family, friends, food, festivities - a time of the year that is greatly anticipated, perhaps considered the most wonderful time of the year.
My Christmas Day's have always been on the quiet side. Growing up in a single parent family my Christmas Day was spent with my 'famous five' - my Mum, my Nanna and Pa, my little sister and I. Christmas eve [without fail] was always a visit to Church, more often than not to St. John's Church in Trafalgar, Gippsland. My Pa was a bit of a rock star within the Parish as the go-to Mr. Fix It and gardener extraordinaire - I always felt so proud to be walking into Church with my Pa and would sing and pray with gusto, hoping that he'd be proud of me in return.
Whilst we always knew that times were tough for Mum, Christmas always felt like it was more about spending a special day with family, rather than presents piled high underneath a Christmas tree. My sister and I knew that our Mum did her very best, but always sensed that she experienced sadness at Christmas time, despite her brave face. And whilst we had awareness that our Christmas Day looked a little different to our friends, I don't think we ever felt like we were missing out. My Nanna's roasts were the best, with the veggies coming straight from Pa's garden, and her apple sponge for dessert, delicious. Christmas afternoon's were quiet, with Mum, Nanna and Pa sleeping off a big lunch, my sister enjoying a new Barbie and adventures around Traf on my bike for me!
For many people and families around Australia, the holiday season can be challenging, making it one of the best times of the year to consider how you might be able to extend a helping hand with those around us who might be facing difficulties during the holidays.
Yesterday I lived through an experience that changes me forever.
Seeking an opportunity to make a difference this Christmas I discovered an amazing Melbourne organisation called The Basket Brigade. The Melbourne Basket Brigade is a small and dedicated group of volunteers who assist locals in need, packing and delivering bags of food and other goods with deliveries made anonymously and arriving just in time for Christmas.
Throughout the month of December, my work colleagues dropped off Christmas themed food items that we then donated to the Basket Brigade, and yesterday I volunteered as a bag packer and driver; having the honour of visiting a local family with bags of food and a Santa sack full of toys for the children. I learned that had it not been for the gifts inside that Santa sack that there were to be no presents under a Christmas tree this year - a feeling that was tearing out the heart and soul of the parents I met, shed a tear with and hugged as warmly as I could! This year they are facing a choice - pay the rent, or buy Christmas presents?
Besides financial pressures there are many other situations that make the holiday season a tough one for so many; loneliness, grief and loss, family tensions and disconnection to name but a few. Being aware that not everyone is up for a joyful holiday experience and then finding ways to be sensitive to this can go a long way in helping someone who is suffering.
If you are keen to learn more, Lifeline have some wonderful resources available for both those seeking some support, and for those working through how to best support others through the holiday season.
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For me, the next seven days leading up to Christmas Day will be spent playing Christmas carols and songs whenever I can (tissues on hand), turning on the Christmas lights on the tree each night and scouring recipe books to see what culinary creations I can prepare with love for my family and friends. I'll be endeavouring to create moments of joy for those around me - but it will be done so with mindfulness. I'm aware that Christmas Day is a hard day for my Mum and my little sister. It's going to be a hard day for the family I met yesterday and it will be a hard day for my friends whose Mum or Dad will be missing from the table again this year. This doesn't mean I won't still make an effort to make the day a beautiful one, but I will be taking the time to think of others and being respectful of how the day makes them feel.
And most exciting of all, I can't wait to secretly revisit the family I met yesterday to leave some more gifts for the children on the front door step - because Santa couldn't find his way down the chimney.
I hope my little stories help to create some positive thoughts; it's often good to feel like you are not alone when you can relate to the story of another, or you might take away one little thought that prompts a different way of thinking.
Whatever your reason for subscribing - I send a from the bottom of my heart thank you, and I hope to see you back in 2024.
Happy Holidays xo
Resources:
Lifeline Australia
The Melbourne Basket Brigade
Director at Australian Sports Commission
1 年Thanks for sharing and great job with the basket brigade Sally. Have a lovely break.