Bee the Light…
As we walk away from the “holidays” I am reminded of light. Hanukkah, Christmas, Solstice/Yule, New Years…all of these are festivals or celebrations that involve lights. We decorate with lights, for Christians, Jesus is born into the world, Hanukkah is literally the festival of light and Solstice/Yule celebrates the longest night of the year by focusing on the fact that the next day, our world starts to gain a little more sunlight each day…little by little we move toward spring and summer and all the beautiful things they hold.
That is what we do every year….we celebrate light and celebrate with lights. We surround ourselves with hope and joy during the coldest, darkest, snowiest, most barren months of our lives. We intentionally decorate, and turn what could be dark/dank days into happiness. It strikes me that we must do the same for our mental health journey. We have to be intentional, and deliberate and focus on being light for others and more importantly for ourselves. It’s a simple thought but so powerful. Think of the choices we make in this season. We bake sweets, light candles, surround ourselves with decorations and things that make us smile. We seek our friends and family when we can, we may give and receive gifts and watch cheesy movies that make us laugh.
So as we move forward into the year, when we feel sad or dejected, when our anger, fear, anxiety, addiction or obsessions rage, we need to stop. We need to stop and breathe and take a lesson from this physical season of darkness. We need to treat our bodies well with tasty treats or good nourishing food. We need to surround ourselves with positive/joyful images, books, media, input, music etc. We need to seek our friends and make connections deliberately. We need to give gifts to ourselves and those we love; physical or emotional. Send a text, take an extra nap, be intentional about self-car. We need to seek and create small spaces of light and hope and walk toward them, focus on *that light* and cling to the happiness it can bring; more so than the darkness or sadness that could surround us. Bee the light for yourself and you will find your way home.
Points for Exercise/Reflection:
- What things do I do that bring happy thoughts, images, feelings, experiences to my life?
- When was the last time I deliberately engaged in those activities?
- What can I do today to infuse more joy/hope into my daily experience?