The spirit of Christmas.
Take a breath into your heart,
Coming to here and now.
Maybe you've had a really busy day,
Maybe it's the run up to Christmas and you've been madly trying to get everything ready.
The presents wrapped,
The food prepared,
The house clean,
Seeing the friends,
Getting everything neat and tidy and organized for the chaos of Christmas morning.
And just take a breath and know that it's all done.
Now imagine yourself on Christmas morning,
You wake up early and all you can hear are the birds singing outside,
For there is a sense of stillness,
Like anticipation is hanging in the air.
The weather is kind,
So you wrap up and step outside.
The sun is shining so gloriously and you take a deep breath into your heart.
Oh Christmas has arrived.
You know what will unfold later,
Once the children or the grandchildren will awake with the presents and the chaos and the noise and the bustle,
The busyness of the kitchen,
The pouring of the drinks,
The friends arriving,
All that might happen at Christmas.
And yet here you are right now on Christmas morning,
Simply enjoying the peace.
For Christmas is a time of peace and joy to the world and whether you follow Christian traditions or not,
It is the basis of all religions to acknowledge the peace,
Serenity and connection from within.
So as you bask on the Christmas morning in this glorious sunshine,
Pull in a picture,
A symbol of a Christmas bauble,
Something you might hang on the tree.
It's a glass bauble and inside is a scene,
Your favourite Christmas scene,
Whether that be the big lunch,
Your friends,
The children or just the quietness,
It doesn't matter.
Just place that scene in the bauble and I want you to anchor into that bauble as well,
This peace and joy and contentment you have right now.
So no matter what chaos unfolds during Christmas,
You only need to think of your bauble and take a deep breath and immediately evoke the wonders of silence,
Of peace in your heart,
Of celebration and connection to your God,
Your source,
Knowing the gift is in the present,
Not so much the presents that come later.
So see this Christmas bauble as a present to yourself to remind you of the power of a present moment with a breath so you can ignite the joy,
Peace and serenity you're experiencing right now and wrap it in that bauble and place it inside your heart.
Now as you imagine yourself coming back inside the house and it is later on on Christmas Day and picture yourself amongst your friends and family or even if you're on your own,
Still totally fine,
You may still wish to evoke the sense of joy and happiness and peace in that moment.
Knowing no matter what is going on around you or not going on around you,
You have the power from within you to evoke all the feelings of peace,
Joy,
Happiness and goodwill to all anytime you choose and when you're in that quiet space you may like to offer metta and send love to your friends family and to the world around you.
Blessings at this Christmas time.
Namaste.