Are you consuming your life with STUFF? STUFF you spend your money on that comes in packaging and then you wrap it wastefully in paper and give it away? Do you practice 1 for them, 1 for me? There’s a comedian who has a great rant about why people need houses – to hold STUFF. Peoples homes are cluttered with STUFF. People need to routinely purge STUFF to accomodate more STUFF. At the Holidays, we give & recieve STUFF. Gifts are often confused with rewards, or exchanged out of guilt or pressure. 

In November we practiced Gratitude. Come January we will make Resolutions. In December, let’s ask What makes a Great Gift?

Pause – take a moment and consider what the Holiday Season means for you.  AND take a moment and consider what gift means to you.

Every day as I first wake up and my mind starts to stir, I check in – and I ask myself 1) What do I need today?, and 2) What do I want today?

~ how would you answer these questions? ~

The answers sometime appear to go together, and other days the two are worlds apart from each other. There are times when the answers are quick and on the surface – like, I will need a nap, or I want a great, big breakfast. At other times I support myself by reminding myself how to pick up my energy and steer my emotions back on track. Sometimes I make new goals – personal or professional.

The point of the practice is to make sure I am getting what I want in life. That I am living life for me, and not taking on other energy draining distractions. This is not selfish. It helps me to see where my energy is going, and where it is being spent. I give myself the gift of clarity and purpose every day.

I truly believe that once you get a handle on what you feel as you gift for yourself, you will also begin to see gift giving toward others in a whole new light. As Awareness and Mindfulness practices develop and your intentions are met with kind actions, more Gratitude will abound, and the need for resolutions will hold a completely different value. Even when you buy your niece the overpriced handbag she is currently coveting – it’s ok to still bring joy and pleasure to others – to make Happiness for One and All.