This is a time for celebrating!
In addition to being a time for welcoming in a new year – with all the hope that it brings for positive change, it is also a time when many of the world’s religions and cultures celebrate important holidays.
Holiday celebrations are special interludes in our busy lives. In some families, it’s one of the few times during the year when all family members are able to get together at the same time. Other families have to rely on phone calls and long distance gift-giving because the various members are too spread apart geographically.
In most families, it is a special time for acceptance of individual differences. It is a time to share the joy of the season with family members precisely because they are our family members – even though some may have made career choices, romantic partner choices, or lifestyle choices that we would not make for ourselves.
This is also a great time of the year for practicing acceptance outside the family. It is a great time to learn about the philosophies and traditions of other religions and cultures. It should not be a time for narrow-mindedness or intolerance of others.
My hope for the holiday season is for each of us to be open-minded and acceptant of choices that others make – even if we wouldn’t make those choices for ourselves and even if we think their belief systems are wrong.
All legitimate religions now preach understanding of others and cooperation to make the world a better place. Each of us can also take a major step in the direction of improved personal mental fitness if we incorporate into our self-concepts the true acceptance of all others whose core beliefs do not violate our rights – even though they may be different from us.
Whatever you celebrate, Happy Holidays!