An Open Heart for Christmas…
“Christmas is not as much about opening our presents as opening our hearts.” ~ JLW Brooks
A truer statement couldn’t be said today for me. This time of year is the perfect reminder that we need to live more with an open heart, open to give and open to receive. To love all humanity no matter our differences and to embrace our loved ones no matter our issues. Certainly, I needed this reminder.
I started 2014 focused on opening my heart. I wanted to love with an open heart, to lead with an open heart and to live with an open heart. I am always learning to open my heart wider and wider.
This year I found that an open heart was necessary to forgive those who said hurtful things to me. My heart hurt a lot this year, from family and friends. I continually had to remind myself of believing positive intent; of knowing that everyone is going through some thing and sometimes people just don’t think. Sometimes the words aren’t correct. Sometimes people are just lashing out. And sometimes it is how they feel and you have to accept it, let go of the hurt and move on.
Christmas this year was definitely about doing what others needed. My mom and dad needed to go home early from my brother’s so we left early. Anything they want, I do. The entire family opened their hearts, sitting with my parents at different points and being ok with whatever break from tradition we needed to ensure their comfort.
My two best friends, focused on their mom’s, both spent some of the Christmas holiday in the hospital. In one case they had the whole family there. They all opened their hearts and changed where and how they would spend their holiday so that their mom was not alone. In the second, it was me and another friend who pulled off Christmas dinner so that my friend could be at the hospital with her mom. We all opened our hearts to do what was necessary to make someone happy.
Open hearts. Christmas is about opening our hearts to love, to love the way another needs it today, not the way you need to love. This is about caring more about someone else then yourself. It isn’t about who bought the nicest thing, the most expensive thing or the most meaningful thing. It is about loving someone without expecting anything. It is about loving someone where they are and not where you are. It is about unconditional love, loving someone fully with no expectation of what you will get back. You will always get back.
Unconditional love will always come back to you from the universe. Put that energy out there. Love with an open heart, and know that it is felt by all.
My Christmas gift to all, my open heart.