The lead up to Christmas can be an overwhelming one for families with children – School holidays are starting, Christmas parties seem to be happening every night of the week and we seem to have been bombarded with Christmas advertising for months now. Television adverts, catalogues, shop fronts, Christmas stalls, emails and newsletters, radio stations are all telling us about all the amazing new products we NEED to purchase in order to make it the BEST Christmas ever. Our children get easily caught up in the hype around Christmas in the commercialised facade that clouds our judgment about what Christmas really is.
We need to return to basics, to pare back our Christmas present lists and focus on the moments of joy surrounding the act of giving that special gift to our loved ones, the joy on their face when they open a small treasure, a token of our love and connection to them. We also need to remember the gift of time, our presence rather than our presents. Connection is the key!
Daniel Burton