It’s Beginning to look a lot like Christmas

It's almost the Christmas, and Christians worldwide are celebrating one of the most important holidays of the year - the birth of Christ.

It's a season to be jolly and happy. A time to celebrate with family and friends. It's a time for everyone, no matter what their religion, to pause and take stock of the year that's been, and raise a glass to one another.

It's a time to forgive our differences and get on, no matter how difficult. It's a time to take a break from work, school, and travel and just be….

That's what the holidays are like for many of us who are fortunate to have family and friends - those special people that we choose to be our people.

Who are your people? Do you have family to celebrate with or do you rely on your friends?

I know that not everyone has someone special in their life, and I thank my lucky stars for allowing me to be surrounded by family.

I didn't always have that.

The Advent Season

The build-up to the Christmas season is what Christians call the Advent Season. It's usually four weeks and a few days before Christmas Day to prepare and get ready for the holidays.

As each week goes by during advent, a candle is lit each Sunday. Each candle has a name; hope, peace, joy and love.

The Sunday before Christmas is the day when Christians have four lit candles on the dinner table, and in the living room.

There is a final fifth candle that is lit on Christmas Day. The day that 2,000 or so years ago, Christ was born in Bethlehem.

The season of Advent is a busy time for many people. If you have a family with young children, there is always the build-up of anticipation and excitement for Santa Claus to come.

Kids might have an advent calendar to mark off the day by opening one window with a chocolate or small toy treat inside. Christians decorate their houses with Christmas trees, ornaments and maybe even a Christmas wreath on the front door.

We light up our houses inside and out to make our homes bright and cheerful. My own kids have been vibrating with excitement and energy for about a month now, and everyone is tired but happy.

Keeping the kids busy before the holidays is always a challenge because if you live in the northern hemisphere, it is also getting dark early.

I bake and do craft activities with my kids, and play board games some evenings to give everyone a break from games and computers. We make gingerbread men and Christmas toffees. We build toy models out of wood or Legos.

I get my guitar and flute out and play Christmas carols with my kids and their friends. It is a time for us to gather as a family after a busy day at work and school and be together.

We light the advent candles before dinner each night and cozy up as the day folds into darkness. Traditionally, where we live, our kids do a Christmas showcase, and a nativity play in our elementary and middle schools.

Every state and county has different traditions. At work, there are usually Christmas parties, dinners, and drinks to celebrate another year gone by and to wish everyone a happy Christmas.

Families are usually spread out and no longer living in the same cities and towns as we used to 100 years ago.

Traveling to see loved ones

Do you travel to see your loved ones for the holidays?

There are always people in families who travel. Some of us usually travel far and wide to visit with family over the holidays.

Airports, freeways, buses, and trains are fully booked just before the holiday starts. Retail businesses are also busy before the holidays, with grocery stores, food markets, and other businesses bursting at the seams with food, Christmas presents, and all you can think of to buy.

You can buy pretty much anything before Christmas. If you are in marketing, you will have been campaigning for weeks to get customers to buy the products you are selling.

Delivery vans are speeding up and down our streets to deliver parcels and gifts to people everywhere.

The Christmas holiday season is big business.

Celebrating Christmas

Christmas Eve arrives, and time slows down. People have all their loved ones in one place. Every decoration and gift have been bought and wrapped.

Most countries in Europe and Asia celebrate Christmas on Christmas Eve. All Christians have their own traditions of food, drinks, treats, and the time they exchange their gifts.

The tradition's are as individual as our faces, and all families are slightly different in the way they celebrate.

What we all have in common is that we have come to spend time together.

It's a precious time of year. In the US, UK, and Australia, we celebrate Christmas on Christmas Day. That's the day we have our Christmas dinner and exchange gifts.

It's a day when our Christmas table is filled with happy faces and joy as we share Christmas food and laughter. A time when our "emergency chairs" come out from the cupboard, as we don't normally have 12 people around the table.

If you are religious, you may go to church on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day or maybe one of them, depending on when you can fit everything into the day.

When it's time to exchange gifts, we gather together in one room and often spend hours laughing and enjoying each precious gift. The kids get so excited about their presents as there is a flurry of wrapping paper and tape that gets catapulted around the room with whoops of joy and happiness.

It's all part of Christmas - sharing joy and happiness.

Remember those who are alone at Christmas

Not everyone's got family at Christmas or a home. I used to be one of them because I chose to move away from my own family due to abuse. It was my choice and the right one for me.

Christmas can be a very lonely time, and if you are one of those trauma survivors who don't have family, I think of you.

I hope that wherever you are in your healing journey, you keep well and take some time for yourself. Spend some time with a friend and in a happy place.

Try not to be alone for the whole day. Look after yourself and know that you do matter and you are not alone. There is a new year just a few days away with an endless amount of opportunities and possibilities.

The future is always bright.

I wish you all a happy and joyful Christmas.

With Love

Elizabeth

My name is Lizzy. I'm a trauma survivor, a wife, a mom, a teacher, and an author.

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