If you are reading this, you are incredibly fortunate. You have been blessed because it means that you have enough to satisfy your basic needs. That is, you have a roof to live under, food to eat and clean water to drink. Or, in other words, you have what millions of other people dream of.
We are in constant distraction by materialistic inauthenticity that we have forgotten what is important. We might know the number of affairs our favorite celebrities have had this year, but we don’t know that farmers in India are dying in the thousands from suicide annually because of the debt and unemployment crises. We might know which of our social media “followers” didn’t “like” our latest Instagram selfie, but we don’t realize that 36% of the world’s population is living in poverty. Even worse, we make time to mindlessly scroll through social media but still haven’t made the time to talk to our older neighbour that longs for a visit.
The Christmas season is upon us, and like many, it is my absolute favorite time of year. And I never understood the “Grinch’s of Christmas”, the ones who dreaded the holidays. However, this year, when I was asked by a man in the grocery store check out as he overheard a conversation of mine discussing my excitement over the approaching holidays, he opened my understanding. He asked me why “I really did love Christmas so much, it’s solely a marketing scam”. As I was walking out of the store and on my way home, I watched the different lonely faces of people purchasing things and the homeless on the side of the street, and I realized that Christmas is not the same for others as it is for me. That many people go into a state of depression from the loneliness of not having loved ones around them, or not having the funds to purchase what their children have asked Santa Claus for. In my family, it really has never been about gifts but rather just spending time with each other and being thankful for all that we have and I truly believe that’s why Christmas was such a magical time.
I am not saying to not give gifts this Christmas, because when truly thought out, gifts can be a form of love. However, to me, if there’s anything we need more of, it’s not more clothing or gadgets, it’s intimate looks, warm hugs, kind words, and generous smiles. Not candy canes, over-priced candles, and wrapping paper. In other words, we need more human connection and less of what humans can get for us.
You see, in this crazy world that we live in, even love has been commercialized. It is sold to us and we are more than willing to spend our money to buy it — and most of the time it is with money we don’t even have. We are so consumed in our careers and how we are previewed in the digital world that we have lost touch with what really matters. And it really is simple. It’s love. We need to look up from our phones, our careers, our stress and start living in the present again.
For some, Christmas is a time of joy and celebration. However, for others, it’s a painful reminder of what has been lost or never earned. No matter what you’re experiencing this holiday season, Christmas is an opportunity to focus on hope. Call me a hopeless romantic, or cliche, but this Christmas let’s spread the real magic of Christmas again. This Christmas, let’s get back to what makes Christmas magical. Let’s not give each other more things and instead give each other more love. Let’s not gift products and instead, gift experiences. Gift experiences of connection, and compassion. Let’s give the gift that will actually fill an emptiness in the lives of others. The gift of love.
Just think of how different this Christmas could be. How different, if all our mindsets shifted from materialism to love; from arguing over differences to learning from our differences and sharing our similarities, from the stress of buying and getting the right gifts to simply enjoying the presence of the people around you.
And one more thing. Let’s not save it all for Christmas Day. Start now and carry on past the season. Henry James, a well-known author once said; “Three things in human life are important. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. And the third is to be kind”’. As we all strive to lead more peaceful lives, it would be wise to take these words and utilize them in our everyday lives. It would be unreasonable to believe that each individual can do great things. However, we can all do things with the utmost love.