Thank You For Being Here
Thank you for being you.
The holidays are a mixed bag. For some, this is a happy, joyful, amazing time. But for others, it’s a sad, unhappy, awful time. Your mileage may vary.
I can relate to the discomfort many experience this time of year. As a child, I grew up as a non-Christian minority (my family is Jewish) in a very Lutheran area. Coupled with that, I was also the only one who had divorced parents, one of whom lived halfway across the country.
Then, because that wasn’t entertaining enough, when I got severely injured in 1999, I spent the month of December in a rehab hospital. The nurses’ station had a radio on all the time, and it only tuned into one channel – so I was bombarded by never-ending Christmas music.
This year has been additionally rough because it is the first year my wife and her family are without her mother. Suffice it to say, the holiday spirit is proving elusive for everyone.
This can cause you to feel ostracized, disconnected, and like you are somehow wrong. All the messages say you’re supposed to be happy and connected and more. So what if you aren’t?
It’s okay to not be okay. You’re allowed to be unhappy, to feel disconnected, to not be in the spirit of the season.
Still, that doesn’t help when society makes you feel bad about yourself. And don’t even get me started on current politics and that quagmire.
Taking all this into consideration, I’d like to empathize with you.
It’s okay not to be into it all
It drives me nuts that Christmas decorations, music, and other elements of the holiday have started appearing earlier and earlier. I get it, some of you are super into this. But for real, can we at least finish Halloween and maybe get within a week of Thanksgiving in the US before everything turns into Christmas?
For every person who loves this, I knew 3-5 who are not fans. There is a lot of pressure to get into it, to accept it into your heart, to be into it with every fiber of your being.
If you are not a Christian this is just another day. And even if you are, really, today is just another day. If you celebrate and love it, I’m happy for you. Please, enjoy! But many can’t and don’t, for all sorts of reasons.
Whatever the case, it’s okay not to be into it all. Have no holiday spirit, no fucks to give, nothing speaking to you about this time of year? That’s okay. You are not a bad person because it’s okay to not be into it all.
Still, that can feel like a lie because it’s not the message dominating the world. What can you do about that?
Let’s create another message. One that is more inclusive, comes with no strings attached, no expectations, and no obligations. You can simply relish it and let it be something or nothing.
Here is the message I desire to put out there.
Thank you for being here
Many people find this time of year the hardest time of year to feel good, connected, or like they should even be here. Yet just because you’re not into it, it might not be your thing, or circumstances have taken your fucks away, you matter. Who you are, what you feel, how you feel, and everything that makes you, you, is just as worthwhile today as it is any other day of the year.
That’s why my message to you is – thank you for being here. Thank you for being you. Even if I don’t know you personally, or you’re reading this randomly and have no clue who I am, I still, genuinely, thank you for being here.
Your light, your energy, and your being, all make this world a better place. Even if that feels like a lie, like it’s a crock of shit, it’s still true. Thank you for being here.
Thank you for being you
It is not easy to be. No matter who you are, where you come from, or what your experiences have been, life is not always easy. Everyone faces challenges, everyone experiences loss and pain. What that looks like and how it impacts you is utterly variable. Yet it’s not something only you can, do, and will experience. EVERYONE can, does, and will.
Despite that, I want to thank you for being you. Again, even if I don’t know you, I’m grateful to and for you. Thank you for being here and being you. I appreciate you reading these words, and I hope that good or bad, this gratitude I give with an open heart energizes you positively.
You are worthy and deserving of all the kindness, compassion, and empathy. If today has meaning for you or not, thank you for being here, and thank you for being you.
I believe this is a message everyone can get behind. It’s my hope that this message of kindness, compassion, and empathy sustains and empowers you.
Thank you for being here. Thank you for being you.
This is the six-hundred-seventy-ninth (679) exploration of my Pathwalking philosophy. These weekly essays are my ideas for – and experiences with – applying mindfulness and positivity to walk along a chosen path of life to consciously create reality.
I share this journey as part of my desire to make a difference in this world and empower as many people as I can with conscious reality creation.
Thank you for joining me. Feel free to re-post and share this.
The first year of Pathwalking, including expanded ideas, is available here. Check out Amazon for my published fiction and nonfiction works.
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