I had a Reiki treatment the other day with my friend Terry Anne.

We had an interesting conversation after the treatment where she was telling me the things that came up for me during the treatment. One of those things was that I was giving away my power.

She followed this by saying how easy that is to do at this time of year because as women, we are the ones who make everything happen.

And I thought wow – that’s so true.

Then, I get in my car and the song “Christmas Shoes” is playing. You know the one? It brings me to tears every time. One of the lines in the song is “Mama made Christmas good at our house”

My husband is awesome. Truly. But I can’t imagine what Christmas would be like if it were up to him. Actually, I can. There would be love – lots and lots of love. There’d probably be a BBQ and maybe a DQ cake and the kids would all get a goofy gift. And you know what? They’d love it and they’d love each other. And they wouldn’t think twice that anything was missing.

Why on earth do we worry so much? Why do we run ourselves ragged for things that really don’t matter two hoots in the long run?

What would happen if we just chilled? Maybe cut back on the food a bit, cut back on the gifts a bit, did a little more sitting and listening to Christmas music or watching Christmas movies with our kids? What would that look like in your house?

Newsflash –

• None of us needs anything material. We live in one of the richest countries in the world. What we’re starving for is connection and a feeling of making a difference in the world. Our kids don’t need more stuff.
• You can buy your Christmas baking. Once you start, you’ll never go back – trust me. My kids make 2 requests for their favourites and the rest I purchase on a tray, ready to serve. I’ve been doing this for at least 5 years and you know what? Nobody cares that I didn’t make it. It costs less than it did to buy all of the ingredients and I have HOURS of time for other things. Things like sipping wine and writing blog posts 😉
• If we are truly the keepers of Christmas, wouldn’t we rather our daughters look back at their Christmases and say WOW – my mom focused on the things that mattered. I hope that I can do the same. Wouldn’t we rather our sons learn to throw themselves into the planning because it’s fun and they’re making a difference?
• Nobody wins if we are worn out, fighting illness, or resentful by the time Santa comes.

Although it may sound corny, how about being the keeper of a different kind of Christmas? How about letting something go and focusing on what we have? Giving to those in need at home and around the world? How about sitting around and feeling love more than ever before?

How about teaching our families to keep the spirit of Christmas in their hearts and not to worry about the rest of the craziness?