Dec 6 • Jenn Bedlington

Reclaim Christmas: 5 Gifts of True Meaning for Meaningful Connections




Sometimes even Santa feels that Christmas has turned into a monster, devouring time, energy and cash...

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Has your Christmas lost its meaning?

What if you could reclaim Christmas celebrations as a time for meaningful connection with your family?

And give gifts of the highest value, at the lowest cost, that keep on giving throughout the year? Gifts that reflect the true meaning of Christmas?


Here are 5 ideas for gifts that anyone would treasure.

1. Your compassion and empathy

This simply means sitting with them when they’ve got tough stuff going on.
Sitting without judgment, blame or criticism.

Listening.

Remaining open to understanding what it’s like for them.

Your immediate gift can be showing true interest in their life and how they’re travelling.

2. Generosity of time and attention

What would you treasure more?

More stuff, that you’re not sure you’d ever buy for yourself, and that you don’t have the space to store?

Or quality time with the people you love?

So instead of buying that expensive gift, or even just giving money because you don’t know what they’d like, how about a promise to spend time with them doing something they enjoy?

3. Listening when they need you to listen

Not pretend listening when you’ve got one eye on a screen, or your mind is elsewhere.

It’s listening when they need to talk, not when you’re ready to listen.

So perhaps your gift is a commitment to regular time together when you can focus on the other person fully.

4. Building memories together

Do you have family traditions that bring people together, sharing food, having fun, and above all, laughing together?

Traditions don’t have to be limited to Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year!

You might organise a games night or a scavenger hunt, make up a family song and record it for everyone, or go on a road trip together.

Your gift is your creativity and your skills in making it happen.

5. Having the courage to hold a difficult conversation

We all have problems and challenges that we don’t deal with very well. Often, families just pretend they don’t know and talk around the issue.

Sometimes, the person is desperate for help but too ashamed to ask for it, or don’t want to worry anyone. But if just one person has the courage and confidence to name the issue in a supportive way, then help can flow.

It might be a trivial matter like please put the toilet seat down, or something much more confronting like helping someone name an addiction and seek professional help.


What do all these gifts in common?

You’re humbly giving your humanity and your care.

How are you going to bring simple joy back into your Christmas?