How do you take care of yourself during the holidays – especially if alone?
The other day I found myself at 4:30pm sitting in a local restaurant – one that had working electricity - having my first cup of Jo and hot food for the day. The sierra foothills had a snow storm that knocked the electricity out sometime during the night and when I awoke in the morning I found I had no heat, no lights, no telephone service, no television, and no connection to the web. And my computer was fast losing its charge as I busied my morning playing scrabble and spider solitaire.
The heavy snow kept me at home most of the day and by early afternoon I found myself feeling a little restless, anxious (could have been the lack of caffeine!) and feeling isolated as no one I called from my cell answered their phones. Everyone’s phones were out, including cells with run down batteries! It was an experience short lived, but with the holidays approaching it brought to mind how important it is for me to be intentional about my holiday plans so I don’t feel too alone. Being divorced and living alone has taught me to think ahead and plan how I am going to spend my time, especially if I won’t be with family. And by doing so, I have had some great holidays, even though occasionally spending them in some unusual ways.
How about you? What are your holiday plans? With the Christmas holidays just around the corner, what are you plans for the holidays? What are you doing to ensure that you experience and feel the spirit of gratitude and joy during the holidays?
Here a few things I have done in the past to make my holidays away from family fun and enjoyable.
· Fi First Christmas alone I took my daughter’s truck and with a girlfriend to the mountains, loaded the truck bed with snow and took it to the valley and built a snowman on the front lawn to surprise my friend and her children. My heart was full of love and laughter and my body worn out which gave me a great night’s sleep.
· W Went with a girlfriend and our dogs to a hotel by the beach (cheap), had our own lights, candles, and Christmas music and enjoyed a wonderful, but different Christmas. Wouldn’t have been the same in my home alone, that’s for sure.
· I’ I've gotten together with other people who were also doing their holidays alone. It was all rather spontaneous and we spent time listening to each other’s Christmas traditions.
· S Served turkey at a women's shelter. I was impressed with how these women were enjoying the holiday regardless of the circumstance. Great lesson for me.
Those experiences taught me the value of being intentional about what I am going to do during the holidays to make them fun and enjoyable for myself. The times I haven’t done this . . . well, you know that story!
This Christmas is another one that I will be spending alone (or should I say differently). Will you? I’d love to hear from you and the ways you have celebrated your holidays when circumstances have you spending them alone. Post below what you have done and the lessons you learned so we can discover and learn together. Let’s make the choice to take good care of ourselves so we enjoy this coming holiday season. Is that a deal?
Our next Circle of Life / Power of Focus 16 week teleclass begins March 10, 2010. Stay tuned. We are having a great time and participants are making great progress in our current class. We’ll share some of the stories the first of the year.
May the holidays this year bring you special joy and much sweet peace. Happy Holidays,
Marlene
© Copyright 2009 Marlene Lockwood All rights reserved.
