Welcome to Celebrating Yourself,
I'm Christina Hart.
Today I will share with you a meditation and a journal prompt to help guide you to higher awareness of how you can celebrate yourself and others.
I will also share a letter I wrote my family at Christmas.
But before I do,
I would like to share some background regarding the inspiration behind this letter and behind the Celebrating Yourself meditation.
From the time I was 5 to age 15,
I did not celebrate Christmases.
The contributing factor to this was my family's beliefs.
At the time,
I felt that I missed out on so much fun as I watched other children in the classroom color Santa Claus pictures and make gifts for their families.
At the time,
I was not allowed to participate.
So when I became an adult and I had my own children,
I overcompensated.
I missed childhood experiences of Christmas,
And I spent many hours decorating the house,
Turning it into a wonderland,
And carefully and lavishly wrapping every present.
It was a major event for me.
I went to a local coffee shop recently,
And from this experience I will share with you,
Opened my mind and made me wonder what is truly inspiring people to wait in long lines,
Sweat as they're sitting in traffic,
And spend thousands of dollars on gifts,
And going into debt?
Some would say,
Well we're celebrating Christ,
Or it's expected,
It's a tradition.
However,
For myself,
Simply a man,
Sitting in a coffee shop,
Having a simple conversation,
Helped me examine my own values and motivations,
Which I will share with you in my personal family Christmas letter.
Merry Christmas.
On November 27,
2022,
I took my computer work to the local CDA Idaho coffee shop.
As I was sitting in front of the enormous warm fireplace,
A young couple sat next to me.
It was obvious that they're on a date.
I could not help to overhear their conversation.
The young man began sharing his childhood experiences with this young lady next to him.
He explained the process of how his family celebrated birthdays.
With a crackle of sadness threading through his voice,
He continued,
Before my birthday,
My parents would just ask me what I wanted,
And when it came,
They just handed me the presents and a card.
It felt like it was just another task on the list.
It was literally a five minute birthday.
I never really felt my family celebrated me or my existence.
His message won my attention,
Not just because of the memories of uncelebrated childhood birthdays,
But because this is unspoken pain is often felt and shared with so many of us in this world.
It was evident he had a deep desire to be celebrated,
And it was important enough to share with a potential future lover.
I want to be valued.
I want my life and who I am to be celebrated.
These were the unspoken words emerging from the depth of his being.
Am I truly loved?
Am I needed in this world?
Often we bury these emotions deep within our soul until we nurture them or until someone else helps us heal.
Although we're responsible for our well-being and caring for ourselves,
Part of what makes us feel loved is knowing we have entered in this world for a reason and for a purpose,
And this mission began with our family.
When others express their love and acceptance of us,
This energizes our heart and our life.
It helps heal our self-doubt and helps us to feel fuller.
Our souls feel richer and regenerated.
Isn't it true that love heals all things,
Believes all things?
Love never fails?
This unexpected conversation inspired me to reflect on the real reason that I loved to celebrate birthdays and Christmases.
It was never truly about the gifts themselves.
The time I would take to pick out and wrap presents so carefully was fueled by the experience of the feelings of joy.
I would catch myself daydreaming about family time,
The smiles,
The laughter.
These precious moments were worth milking all day long,
And thank you for mutually basking in these long Christmas moments with me.
What do you truly remember the most during Christmas?
Is it the gifts or the experiences?
Is it the fresh scent of Christmas tree apple spice candles,
Feeling the warmth of a cup of hot cocoa in our hands,
Hearing the magical notes of the Nutcracker Christmas music,
Seeing the flickering colorful tree lights,
The bright angel on the treetop overlooking a room of laughter,
Watching the kids dance around,
The sound of paws before someone opens their gift,
Anticipating their reaction?
These are my most precious memories of Christmas.
How can we find a way every day to celebrate each other and unleash our inner Santa whose reindeers and sleighs leap forth from our hearts and deliver gifts of love to one another?
I wish the love we express to our loved ones at Christmas were expressed every day throughout the year.
Would not this truly make every day feel like it was Christmas?
I celebrate the man in the coffee shop for expressing his truth and appreciate how his experience provides a valuable message to us all.
Every day,
Let us remember to celebrate those we love,
Including ourself,
And those who have not always felt celebrated.
Elton John's song comes to mind and beautifully sums it up.
And you can tell everybody,
This is your song.
It may be quite simple,
But now that it's done,
I hope you don't mind,
I hope you don't mind that I put down in words how wonderful life is while you're in the world.
I want you to know I celebrate you with love.
I'd like to invite you to close your eyes and take a deep breath in and breathe out.
In this following meditation that I wrote,
You can listen to when you're feeling uneasy,
Unsure,
Unsettled,
To bring you peace.
This meditation is for you.
It is for I.
It is for all.
I celebrate you,
Dear one,
For every simple breath that I breathe.
For I have endured unpredictable waters of life,
And my light is bright,
And my sun within still shines.
I celebrate my soul for its conscious healing and unconditional love,
For your external devotion to my infinite wisdom,
And you have done so much more than I can account for.
I celebrate my heart for your warm expansion and for your silent grace as you live in the shadows of darkness while radiating the light within.
I celebrate myself for living the life I am meant to live,
And when hopes fail and dreams slip away,
You still continue to stand by me.
You are my best friend,
And you are truly.
I would like to invite you,
When you're ready,
To grab your pen and your journal,
And we are going to follow up with three journal question prompts,
And you will have one minute each to continue writing.
Question number one.
What do I celebrate about myself?
Again,
What do I celebrate about myself?
You will have one minute,
And then once you hear a chime,
We will begin with journal prompt.
Journal prompt question number two.
What is holding me back from celebrating myself and others more?
Again,
What is holding me back from celebrating myself and others more?
Again,
What is holding me back from celebrating myself and others more?
Again,
What is holding me back from celebrating myself and others more?
Again,
What is holding me back from celebrating myself and others more?
Again,
What is holding me back from celebrating myself and others more?
Journal prompt question number three.
What steps can I take to celebrate myself and others more?
What steps can I take to celebrate myself and others more?
Again,
I'd like to thank you for taking your time to celebrate yourself with me,
And I would appreciate if you have any questions or comments,
Please feel free to reach out and share your experience.
I would really like to know if this touched you in any way,
Or maybe gave you some insight or awareness that you were not aware of.
I celebrate you,
And you can tell everybody this is your song.
It may be quite simple,
But now that it's done,
I hope you don't mind,
I hope you don't mind that I put down in words how wonderful life is while you're in the world.
