Holiday Purpose

The holidays are upon us. Thanksgiving is over and the Christmas rush has begun. I’m a Christmas junkie. I admit it. I’m cheesy for any and all holiday activities, be it big or small. In fact, this past weekend, I kicked off my holiday season with a trip to the Festival of Lights and to see the Marion Square Tree Lighting. For me, the holidays haven’t begun until I take my (first) spin through James Island County Park’s light show extravaganza.
But, as I get older, I realize the holidays fly by and before I know it, I’m taking down my Christmas tree with a serious case of Post Holiday Depression (PHD). It’s not serious enough to call the doctor but I do get a little sad that all the hype is over. No more get togethers centered solely around the purpose of baking cookies? No more ugly Christmas sweater parties or Christmas parades? Or worse yet, no more thinking of those less fortunate and ways to give back?
What’s truly the meaning of this season for you? I’m the guiltiest of all about getting caught up in the hype. I want to experience it all and by all, I also mean the gifts. I spent an hour today looking at the cyber Monday deals, plotting my moves to find the perfect gifts for the ones I love. And then I realized, I hadn’t plotted my moves to give back. So this year, as the season begins, I have three goals 1. Give back to my community. 2. Be purposeful in my spending and 3. Savor the moments because they go by fast.
If you’re interested in giving back to your community this holiday season, there are many ways you can do so from monetary donations to toy drives to adopting a family for Christmas. Choose the level of involvement you are comfortable with but you will never regret it!
My next goal is to be purposeful in my spending. In the past, I’ve had a tendency to get carried away, which is easy to do with all the deals stores throw at you. This year, I’m making a list and sticking to it. It helps that my family has agreed to do a gift exchange instead of presents for everyone. This takes away the financial burden but also the time and energy to buy more gifts. With the money I save, I hope to use that to give back.
Lastly, I want to be present in the holiday moments I do participate in and create. So often, I am caught up in making sure everyone else is having fun, that I forget to stop, relax and enjoy the moments myself. I will remember I don’t have to be perfect, just present! I hope you and yours have a magical holiday season!
 
Katie Wells is a local writer and owns KEW Solutions, a customer service training company. She can be reached at kewsolutionsinc@gmail.com