Just when you think the holidays are over......the holiday of "love" is looming......

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Whewww.........Christmas is over......New Year's eve is over........but oh wait......the holiday of "love" is looming ahead.......yikes!  Just when you think it's safe to exhale, you realize another holiday is on the horizon, and you have to start thinking what, where, who will be involved.

I don't know about you, but the holidays have morphed in meaning for me through the years.  Christmas is all about my grandchildren now......I honestly could care less if anyone got me a present.....I just love watching my grandchildren's faces as they marvel at Christmas decorations (no matter how cheezy), and rip through the wrapping paper to discover their newest and most prized possession.  New Years......honestly, it's never lived up to the hype for me, so rather than dwell on what the marketing experts are telling me it should be, I find meaningful things to do on that evening and the next day.  This year I took a rocking chair I bought for my oldest daughter over thirty years ago and painted it for my grandson's third birthday.


 
 He's a shark fanatic, so the decision of the subject matter was pretty easy......it became a labor of love, and to see the little smile on his precious face when he's sitting in makes it worth every hour I spent making this old chair new again.  I can tell he really likes it because he gets up after sitting in it to  look at the sharks on the seat.....really kind of comical (although I would never tell him that!).

So why am I writing about this?  Well, the holidays for many are a source of painful reminders, and bring with them a mixture of anticipation and dread.  It's easy to bog down in self-misery, but rather than focusing on what might or might not be in your life, find an activity that takes your mind off.  Try focusing on what's positive.  If you're sitting in your own home, in front of a computer or I-Pad, you have much to be grateful for right off the bat!

Putting your focus on someone else tends to make what might be an unbearable day, bearable and actually enjoyable.  Choose an activity that you enjoy and adapt it to become a gift for someone else.  That "someone else" can be anyone.......the point of the gift is two-fold.......the recipient may be feeling the same as you, and cheered up by an unexpected gesture of thoughtfulness.  You, as the giver, create a positive thought process in  your own mind, and become the recipient of bringing happiness to someone else.