This is a revisitation of a blog I posted a year ago during the holiday season, which — as you know — can be a no-tidings-of-great-joy time of year. Especially if you’ve lost something of infinite value.
Like your health. Or you’re dealing with the aftermath of cancer, or financial reversals.
Or you’ve lost that most perfect astonishing, believer-in-your-dreams, would-do-anything-for-you, would-go-anywhere-with-you person in your life.
Photo courtesy of Unsplash
If I had to sum up the message of this blog in one sentence it would be something like this: “The reason to not give up on life, especially during this can-be-challenging holiday season, is because you are needed.”
But let’s get down to the details.
#14. Your country needs you — to vote, write letters to your congresspersons, pay your taxes (you’re pretty jazzed about that last one, right?).
#13. The economy needs you — to purchase hand-crafted, local-made holiday gifts; treat a friend to Chai tea; purchase tickets to the local community theater.
#12. Your town needs you — to volunteer at the women’s shelter, help maintain the local snow-shoe trails, listen to second graders read.
#11. Your furry and feathery friends need you. Your gerbil needs to be exercised; the deer appreciate that you keep the bird feeders filled and within their reach this time of year.
#10. Charity event planners need you — to man an aid station along the route of the Jingle Bell Run, coordinate the gathering of groceries for families in need, work the check-out table for the library book sale benefit.
#9. Your neighbors need you — to take their garbage to the curb and pick up their mail while they’re out of town; to help them eat the overabundance of fruitcake they bring home from Grandma’s.
#8. Your co-workers need you — to join them in team, because you worked so well together and it just isn’t the same without you.
#7. Your book club/knitting crew/hike posse/pickleball team need you. They need your wisdom and insight, your friendship, your mean serve. They need you to fill the *you-shaped* hole that would be there if you weren’t.
#6. Your faith community needs you — to bake a casserole for that bereaved family, to sing in the Christmas musical, to volunteer in the nursery.
#5. Your friends need you — to tell them when something doesn’t look good on them, to tell them they’re making a huge mistake dating that guy, to keep your mouth shut.
#4. Your extended family members need you — to come to holiday meals and family reunions, to stay connected. Because there’s a gap where that loved one once fit. And your family doesn’t want the pain of another gap.
#3. Your at-home children need you — for all the obvious reasons. But did you ever stop to think your adult children need you, as well? To know you’re going to be OK is a comfort to them in their loss; they need you as friend and sounding board; they need you to watch the grandkids while they celebrate their anniversary in Disney World. Without the grandkids.
#2. Your grandkidlets need you — to buy them chocolate steamers, to read bedtime stories, to hold Facetime conversations in which all the world’s problems can be solved (at least for the seven-year-old).
But you want to know the Number One reason you are needed?
#1. Because your husband/wife/parent/child/sibling/best friend would want you to go on living. And not just barely surviving while dragging through life, but truly living forward.
Do you see how important you are? Do you see how many people would be negatively impacted if you stay glued to the couch? If you pull the shades and sleep fifteen hours a day?
You are needed. You are wanted. You are vital.
During this season, where can you show up to bring some holiday cheer to others … and to yourself in the process?
P.S. If you found this post helpful or inspirational, please share, tweet or pin!
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