Give Yourself a Gift This Christmas
- Heidi
- Dec 21, 2015
- 2 min read
The Holidays are for giving thanks for all of the blessings we receive throughout the year and for showing our appreciation for the people and things in our lives. We show our thanks and appreciation by spending time with and giving gifts to our friends and loved ones. This is also the time of year that many of us take the opportunity to express our appreciation for the people that help us in our daily lives like our co-workers, our dry cleaner and our child’s teachers.
But what about the person we should be the most grateful for? Yes…that’s right. I am talking about you! When we think about all that we have to be grateful for we think about our family and our friends and the things we have that make our daily lives comfortable. When it comes to ourselves, we express gratitude for our health but that barely scratches the surface. Each one of us is a miracle and should be honored as such.
Our daily lives are filled with roles and responsibilities. Our perceived value is reflected back to us through our experiences and interactions with others. But other people don’t know our deepest truths. So to only value our health is not enough. We must celebrate ourselves in a much richer way that only we can do for ourselves.
Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper for the Soul eNewsletter this week was about the power of self-love. She very powerfully asserts that
“The world will never love you the way you can love you.”
I believe this to be true. Self-love is not a selfish act. Only by loving ourselves are we able to have the strength to truly love in return.
Maria goes on the write,
“Loving yourself calms your anxiety, calms your fears. If you love and value yourself, you won't tolerate people who don't do the same. If you love and value yourself, you won't look to another for your worth. If you build a foundation of love within yourself, that love can actually change the world.”
This really struck a chord with me.
While I was out shopping for a gift for a friend this past weekend, I came across this heart-shaped key chain. It made me think of this article I read recently about how parents can teach their children to see the good in life even during difficult times. One of the ways was to use an object as a reminder of life’s blessings. For me this heart-shaped key chain is a reminder that no matter what, if I return my focus to love that love will guide me on the right path.
With Christmas just days away and the New Year right around the corner, my wish for all of you is to count yourself as the highest blessing of all. Give yourself the gift of love.
“To have that sense of one’s intrinsic worth…is potentially to have everything.”
-Joan Didion
-Namaste
(Photo by: Me!)
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