The Holidays are Coming ... Pull up your Socks!

If you’ve been reading my blog posts recently, you can tell that I’ve been struggling with a lot in my life lately. Medical stuff, family stuff, pain of course - it feels overwhelming and it’s been difficult to follow my own advice to live in Brave Hopefulness. I can hardly believe that Thanksgiving will be here next week! The holidays are coming up like a freight train and I’m just not feeling festive.

I realize, however, that it’s not up to the holidays to make me feel good. I can’t depend on the decorations, the treats, the cards, the parties, the food, or the gifts to change the way I’m feeling. I’ve got to release the negativity, get off the “pity pot”, and as a dear friend from New Zealand used to say if someone was whiny and resistant to doing something: “Just pull up your socks & get it in gear!”

“We should give meaning to life, not wait for life to give us meaning.”

~unknown

With all the natural disasters, like Hurricane Sandy, and all the crises in the world, my problems are so tiny by comparison. It’s sounds trite and simplistic to say these things, but they really are so true. Why is it always easier to see the bad things, to fixate on them and let them take over our minds? When I start getting depressed and negative, I need to stop myself and counter those thoughts with positive ones. If I can dig deep and find just an ounce of positivity, then the holiday cheer can find a way in... but I have to be willing to receive it.

It sounds like a lot of work. Why does it have to be so hard to embrace our blessings and see the good things in life? It’s all up to us. We have to push aside the negative and let the positive flow into and out from ourselves. This Thanksgiving, if you’ve been feeling the same way I have, try to reach just a little deeper within yourself and “pull up your socks!” 

Holiday Note: 

Time again for white elephants ... Last year, I wrote a post about our church Holiday Bazaar, which I thought I would share it again since it returns today. 
Just click here:  Seeking the Perfect Gift among the White Elephants