What does Christmas mean?

Touchy subject I guess. Part of me wants to get into the details of this very commercially driven ‘holy’day. The mass won’t want to hear it; Christmas is ‘sacred’. After my daily walk, and a dance session, I decided to not go into those details today. Sadly, this time of year seems to be a time where people want to gather, be with each other, and love each other unconditionally, ‘seems’ is the keyword. Like that time I went to church with my mother and younger brother in Miami. At one point in the service, the Catholic priest asks us to turn to our neighbors and wish peace to them. Peace is love. Love is peace. Communion now ingested and sins washed away, these same neighbors are now violent in behavior, trying to exit the parking lot. The Peace so easily tossed out the window and replaced with rage and anger. Yesterday, on Christmas eve, a store clerk speaks to me sideways, forgetting the jolly spirit we all pretend to be in. You know ’tis the season for shoving and pushing, I mean loving and sharing…

Why do we really say ‘Happy Holidays!’? Do we wish that it is jolly as much as it can be until someone or something f**ks it up? Do we really intend on wishing others something we don’t know anything about, like happiness? I don’t have the answers for others, but one thing I do is to be careful with my words and even more so with my intentions. The ‘act’ needs to go.

• ’tis the season of giving; smile to your neighbor
• ’tis the season of loving; thank your friends for teaching you
• ’tis the season of family; remember dietary restrictions
• ’tis the season of gifting; practice self-care
• etc…practice it daily, on a yearly basis

As I reflect on what Christmas means, I could only think of what love is. Love is that walk that leads to dance. Love is listening to music, expressing, dancing, capturing even. What a relief, salvation, a liberation, an advantage it is. A gift to practice self-care. This is what Christmas means to me this year. Self-love.

I hope wherever you are, you take the time to practice this very important thing that is self-care. This attention to self will enable others to appreciate you even more. A person that respects themselves, will respect others. There is no respect without love…On that note

Peace & Love,

g&L