COVID-19 means that much of our traditional Christmas is not going to be on the cards this year but there’s still plenty to be thankful for and to celebrate.
A crisis often brings out the best in people, reminding us of why it’s important to celebrate every day and share our love with family and friends. Adversity reminds us of how lucky we are and how important it is to take care of ourselves, our communities, and the planet.
It’s better not to dwell on what we can’t do but concentrate on being grateful for what we have. A mindset of gratitude is not always easy to attain during the challenging moments in our lives, but shifting focus to the things we can be grateful for is good for our mental health and good for the soul.
Gratitude
We are all grateful for the heroes of the NHS who put their own lives at risk to care for total strangers simply because it is what they do.
The sun rises every day, the dawn chorus is easier to hear in lockdown and we have a vaccine now.
Simple things that we rarely think about are worth a second thought. Running water is something we take for granted but we’ve all seen the WaterAid adverts that show people walking miles to collect dirty water because they don’t have drinking water coming out of a nearby tap, let alone hot water on demand.
Try to imagine coping with this pandemic without Netflix, the internet, Spotify, ZOOM and Facebook. Everything would be harder to deal with so take time to be thankful for all the technology that powers our 24/7 world.
Weird stuff
We may not be able to meet friends at office parties, go to the pantomime or gather in the local wine bar as usual but there will be new ways to celebrate. We found covid-related Christmas decorations online and Amazon will sell you lockdown romance if that’s your thing. We can be grateful that pigs in blanket flavour crisps are on the shelves and chocolate reindeer are stocked by all respectable supermarkets.
Weird gifts? An updated version of a classic board game is purrfect for anyone who owns or loves cats, and even better for anyone who wishes they were a cat. In original version Monopoly, the goal is to collect property until you became the fattest cat in town, bullying others and putting them out of business. Catopoly reflects a kinder, gentler world where you simply collect cats, until you’re like one of those people you see on the reality shows.
Want something more exotic? Wombats are highly independent animals, but sometimes they need a little help getting it together. If you know an animal lover you can adopt a wombat for them. It’s hands-off, the adopter doesn’t have to do anything as someone else takes care of all the dirty work. The adopter just gets a little card with a cute picture of their wombat and a bunch of swag, and the satisfaction of knowing they’re keeping a potentially troubled marsupial off the streets.
Make merry!
At 10Eighty we love to celebrate and this year we’ll miss our usual Christmas shenanigans in person, but using Zoom, we’ll have a virtual get together complete with champagne and Christmas hats.
We wish you all a very merry Christmas!!
