Category: Christmas Countdown 2023

Posted in Christmas Countdown 2023

Countdown to Christmas: 12/7/23 — “Embrace Your Jolly Side.”

Posted on by Neal Saye

This year my Countdown to Christmas is a nontraditional Advent Calendar centering (pun intended) on mindfulness.

On the front of each card is neat little picture, and on the back are the instructions for the short meditation.

Today, the 7th Day of Advent … “EMBRACE YOUR JOLLY SIDE.”

Here are today’s instructions:

Time to spread some seasonal cheer. Throughout the day, look for any opportunities to smile, laugh and be jolly, and try to mindfully experience these moments.

It can start when you get up in the morning. Stand in front of the mirror, think a happy thought and smile.

Observe the movements in your face and eyes. See how it makes you feel. Think about why the thought you had is a happy one. Then as the day unfolds, smile at the people you meet and be present in that moment. Notice how the other person reacts to your smile.

Look for opportunities to laugh and to initiate laughter. Talk to a funny friend, share a joke or tell a humorous story, watch a comedy show or film, think back to a funny moment from your life.

Try to be fully present when the laughter comes. Notice the physical sensations it makes you feel. Hear the sound of laughter; observe the facial expressions of the other people laughing with you.

Smiling and laughing are relaxing and help lower the heart rate. Let the jolliness out and notice the positivity and relaxation that it brings.

Tugaloo State Park, Lavonia GA

May you Smile and Laugh a lot today!

Posted in Christmas Countdown 2023

Countdown to Christmas: 12/6/23 — “Practice Self-Compassion.”

Posted on by Neal Saye

This year my Countdown to Christmas is a nontraditional Advent Calendar centering (pun intended) on mindfulness.

On the front of each card is neat little picture, and on the back are the instructions for the short meditation.

Today, the 6th Day of Advent … “PRACTICE SELF-COMPASSION.”

Here are today’s instructions:

With presents to buy, social engagements to meet and family commitments to think about, we spend so much time thinking of what we could do for others that anxiety can creep in. Sometimes we may lay awake at night worrying about our own shortcomings or the little things that didn’t go as pianned.

It is important not to lose sight of yourself, and to give yourself credit for your positive qualities.

This evening, exercise some mindful self-compassion by writing down three things that you did well today.

You are free to write what you want – it could be that you did a good job, that you ate well or exercised well, or were a good friend or caring family member to somebody – anything at all from the day that you feel that you did well.

It doesn’t matter whether the things you write are big and important or small and insignificant. The only goal is to spend time thinking about yourself in a positive light.

Praise yourself. Be as kind to yourself as you would to a dear friend.

This task requires us to focus on the positives of the day rather than the negatives, and helps to promote a happier and healthier relationship with ourselves.

Posted in Christmas Countdown 2023

Countdown to Christmas: 12/5/23 — “Study a Candle”

Posted on by Neal Saye

This year my Countdown to Christmas is a nontraditional Advent Calendar centering (pun intended) on mindfulness.

On the front of each card is neat little picture, and on the back are the instructions for the short meditation.

Today, Day Five of Advent … “STUDY A CANDLE.”

Here are today’s instructions:

Candles are ubiquitous at this time of year and a mainstay of many a Christmas display. But how much time do you actually give to observing them?

Sit in a comfortable, peaceful place indoors where there is nothing that can distract you. Place a candle in front of you and light it. For five minutes, your task is simply to stare at the candle. Study everything you can about the candle, the flame and how it makes you feel.

Try to stay completely still and breathe slowly while maintaining your gaze on the candle. Watch the flame as it dances and flickers; is it beautiful, relaxing, hypnotic? Observe the wax melting at the top of the candle.

What other senses does the candle engage? Does it give off a scent? What emotions does it evoke?

Stopping your mind from drifting for five minutes is a tough challenge. Don’t feel bad when your mind wanders – just acknowledge where it is going and gently bring it back to the candle and the moment.

This task helps you train your mind to channel its focus and to stay in the moment. With practice, you will experience the sensation of full awareness on the flame, as the rest of your surroundings fade away.

A sampling of our candles over the years:

May you see Light this day.

Posted in Christmas Countdown 2023

Countdown to Christmas: 12/4/23 — “Write a Mindful Christmas List”

Posted on by Neal Saye

This year my Countdown to Christmas is a nontraditional Advent Calendar centering (pun intended) on mindfulness.

On the front of each card is neat little picture, and on the back are the instructions for the short meditation.

Today, Day Four of Advent … “WRITE A MINDFUL CHRISTMAS LIST.”

Here are today’s instructions:

Your task today is to write a Christmas list – but this is not the kind of list that a child would write to Santa, this list will take the form of a mindful freestyle writing exercise. Take a pen and a clean page, and set aside 20 minutes.

Without any mental preparation, start writing down the things you most want from Christmas this year. But think beyond the presents you would like to receive – consider the more immaterial aspects: the emotions you want to feel, the situations you hope to occur.

With each item on the list, focus your mind purely on that thought, and follow it through to wherever it takes you. Explore the reasons behind your wishes and keep writing what comes to you.

Perhaps you are hoping for a harmonious family gathering; maybe you’re excited to see Christmas through the eyes of a little one; whatever your wish, just keep writing.

Don’t worry if it stops resembling a list or if the subject veers away from Christmas. The only aim is to put your train of thought to paper and see where it goes.

Letting your thoughts develop and expand further than they would usually go can be a very relaxing and revealing experience.

May your Christmas List be a Blessing to you and your/our World.

Posted in Christmas Countdown 2023

Countdown to Christmas: 12/2/23 — “Exercise Generosity”

Posted on by Neal Saye

This year my Countdown to Christmas is a nontraditional Advent Calendar centering (pun intended) on mindfulness.

On the front of each card is neat little picture, and on the back are the instructions for the short meditation.

Today, Day Two of Advent … “EXERCISE GENEROSITY.”

Wait! Stop! That’s not the right type of exercising.

Here are today’s instructions:

They say the true meaning of Christmas is not receiving, but giving. Today, look for opportunities to be generous. There are many different ways that generosity can be exercised, and it doesn’t necessarily have to come in the form of material gifts.

It could be an act of kindness. Helping someone with a task, talking to someone who looks lonely, letting someone with fewer items jump in front of you in the supermarket queue – there are many openings in daily life to perform an act of kindness and feel the warm glow of positivity that comes with it.

It could come in the form of generous words. Try giving someone an honest compliment. Letting someone know what you truly like about them can really boost their morale. Be present in these small positive moments as your compliment is received. Pay attention to the reaction of the receiver, and also to how this small but significant act of giving impacts your own emotions.

Often, little chances to be kind and generous can pass us by when we are concerned with other things.

Throughout the day, make the extra effort to exercise generosity and see how it makes you feel.

Posted in Christmas Countdown 2023

Countdown to Christmas: 12/1/23 — “Look Out the Window”

Posted on by Neal Saye

For some reason, I came up with the idea of trying to find a nontraditional Advent Calendar this year as a way to honor the season. I have enjoyed various types and styles over the years.

whychristmas.com

I finally found online a mindfulness Advent Calendar in the format of 25 cards, each with a short meditation.

It just came in the mail! See?

On the front of each card is a cute little picture.

And on the back are the instructions for the short mindfulness practice.

Robert and I both started it today, with the first meditation, “LOOK OUT THE WINDOW.”

I chose our second floor hallway window.

Oops, let’s wait till that car goes by.

That’s better.

I invite you to join us on this Countdown to Christmas 2023 starting today and leading up to the 25th.

Here are easier-to-read instructions for day one’s little meditation.

It’s the first day of Advent! How Christmassy do you feel? Whether your answer is “very” or “not at all’, the big day is hurtling towards us and there will already be several indications of that fact outside.

Let’s get things started with this mindful seeing exercise. Sit by a window for 5 minutes and just look out.

First: can you see anything that signifies Christmas? Is there frost on the ground? Are there lights and decorations anywhere? Focus on these things. Do they increase your festive anticipation? Are there any signs of Christmas that you have never noticed before? What thoughts and emotions do they evoke?

Next: channel all your awareness into all the other things you can see. Avoid simply labelling things and moving on; for each object, no matter how familiar, observe the shape, the colour, the patterns and the texture.

Notice how the elements interact with the environment, e.g. how the wind blows the branches in the trees.

Try to imagine the view from the perspective of someone who has never seen such sights.

This exercise will help you see and appreciate your local environment and realise just how busy and complex it is.

I was so surprised at what I saw — when I mindfully looked — out that window. Decorations that I had somehow missed in Charles and Faye’s yard across the street, a little bird in the Live Oak tree, a red car, a family on the sidewalk with the toddler skipping, resurrection fern on the tree branches, dust on the window panes ….

See you tomorrow!