Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, it's a phenomenon that's hard to ignore at this time of year. Holiday carols have been playing on the radio for weeks now, everywhere you look there are decorations and lights strung up, and the parking lots at the malls are jammed.

I love the Christmas season, despite all its hustle and bustle. And while indeed the spirit of Christmas is about much more than brightly-wrapped packages under the tree, there is a huge focus on gift-giving with this particular holiday. If you're anything like me, you're still rushing around with only twelve days left till Christmas, and a long list of things yet to buy. Twelve days?! I don't know about lords a-leaping, but THIS lady is dancing. That's right...just like Jennifer Beals' Flashdance flurry of feet, 'dancing' like a maniac all the way to the shopping mall...
Yep, it's about this time of year that I become insanely jealous of all those wildly organized people who finished their shopping (and wrapping) before Thanksgiving.
Yet for all the craziness this time of year entails, it is fun coming up with the perfect gift that will make your loved ones' eyes light up with delight. Taking time during the course of our regular, non-holiday-season lives to do the same is also important - and realistically, even more so. I'm not talking about needing to buy tangible gifts throughout the year, but about giving people the gift of treating them in ways that warm their hearts and light up their lives. That's the spirit of Christmas that ideally lives all year long, and this is just one special time of year when we aim to give people concentrated doses of that warmth and light.
Have you made any plans to give yourself a gift this year? Not the decadent box-of-chocolates or favourite-perfume kind of gift...but rather, a gift that during your regular, non-holiday-season life the rest of the year 'round, lights up your eyes and warms your heart with delight and wonder?
As we head into this special time of love and gratitude and gift-giving, I encourage you to take some time for yourself to consider, as this year winds to a close, what sort of gift you might give yourself as you head into the new year. Is there something on the back burner of your life that you've long wished for or dreamed about, and it's time to bring it to the front burner?
Whether it's something in your personal life, like resuming a long-forgotten hobby that once brought you joy, or perhaps re-investing in certain relationships; or something in your professional life, like going for that promotion or starting your own business...why not make this the year?
When it comes to your personal dreams for your life, nobody can wrap them up and put them under the tree for you with big shiny bows on top. Your dreams are the gift that only you can give yourself.
This year, give yourself the gift of committing to making your dreams come true.