Hope Through the Holidays

The holidays are known to bring three things to people: cheer, stress; and sadness. If you see the holidays in a different light perhaps hope can be added to list.

For many who have families it’s a time of gathering and enjoyment. Cheer is among them. Sometimes you want to just trip them in all their happiness; although it wouldn’t matter because they are just happy. It’s a shame that it isn’t like that every day of the year and that it boils down to this one day but I digress.

The stress of the holidays is something that is quite fascinating to me. Christmas comes the same day each year so it’s not like people don’t have time to plan. It’s no surprise that it’s on the calendar and while it may seem that it comes quicker each year; does it? Maybe implementing a better plan in July would be of help to alleviate the stress so that life can be more cheerful. Maybe? Or maybe it’s just the stress that is part of the holiday celebration. If that is the case you can have it!

Lastly; the sadness that is evident everywhere is something that can’t not be discussed. There are many who have no one, family is far away; finances are tight; the weather is as cold as the hearts of passersby. I could go on but you get the idea. It makes sense that this would be a time that many would prefer to sleep through with a bottle of gin. I certainly get it.

You see; I experienced time in my life being the outsider. I was placed in a homeless shelter at age 15 and nothing I knew was the same. I was in a place in the world where I was alone. Alone. Alone for many years on the inside.  And guess what? I survived! And you will too!

I met my biological family years later and it was an adjustment without a doubt.  Each family and person has their own ideas of the holidays and they all bring their own expectations to the table. This- is the largest problem. Having an expectation of what something should be when it’s not what it is is only a set up for failure. I lived it. I created something in my mind to be what I thought would make me happy and guess what? When others didn’t meet my expectation of it I was not happy. Go figure.

If this is you make this Christmas a good one. You don’t have to have a bunch of stressed out family members to enjoy the holiday. You just don’t. You don’t have to focus on the loss of family members for the 10th year when you could be celebrating instead the life you had with them. Life goes on and living in the past doesn’t help you go forward.

You don’t have to bask in racking up more debt for gifts for people you don’t want to buy for or can’t afford. You just don’t. It’s a scam. Why spend the next year paying off debts that need not be?

You don’t have to live in hopelessness because you think you are alone. You are not. There is One who is with you regardless of whether you want to acknowledge Him. He is there and He always has been. It took me a very long time to grasp that. Once I did my life changed.

For you there is hope. There is hope for a future. There is hope for magnificent brightness in your life. Christmas is but is one day that comes and goes and if you really do your research you may be surprised as to what you learn about the holiday itself.  You are too good to wallow over what you don’t have as I am sure you have more to celebrate than you think. Once I got over myself I realized I did.

I came to the reality years ago that I had the choice to be hopeful or hopeless and I chose hope. Hopelessness leads to defeatedness and there is no way I am going to live defeated because of one holiday that isn’t even about what most people celebrate it to be. How about you?  You can too live in hope and bring it to others.

You can be where ever you are and be a light. You can be the smile that others never see. You can be the merry person you are just because you choose to be.  I’m sure if you look around there is something with less then you. Less family, less presents, less income; less of everything.  I’m sure those with less are still smiling- and isn’t it time that you put on your cape of hope and stand tall and know that this too shall pass? Because my friend; it always does.