Celebrate Simply?with Nancy Twigg’s Guide to Simpler and More Meaningful Holidays?(Counting the Cost Publications; ISBN: 0972839607)
Christmas is right around the corner; are you ready? Nancy Twigg’s book Celebrate Simply: Your Guide to Simpler, More Meaningful Holidays and Special Occasions can help.
“Christmas has become such an expensive, busy, commercialized time of the year,” says Twigg. “Probably the biggest step in keeping holiday celebrations simple is not to let the meaning get lost in the shuffle.”
Here are some thoughts from Twigg to help alleviate the stress and put more meaning into your holiday season:
Think about what you want the occasion to mean for your family. What’s most important to you? What kind of memories do you want to have of the holidays after they’re all over? Then keep that goal in focus as you go about planning your family celebrations.
Many times celebrations become so expensive, stressful, and busy that enjoying them is difficult and the meaning can get lost. “Celebrating simply” means keeping the cost and commercialism under control so that the spiritual significance and family fellowship can truly take center stage.
??To accomplish this, opt for a celebration without charge cards. Twigg says, “Holiday spending on credit increases the stress. Using cash, check or a debit card will help in more realistic and better choices about how the money is spent.”
Money invested in gifts from the heart is priceless. Crafts, food gifts, gifts of time and gift baskets say, “You are special to me”. This kind of gift-giving doesn’t have to cost much.
Keep decorations simple, because what goes up must come down! Often people say they love decorating but they hate having to take it all down after the celebration is over. The solution to this dilemma is to limit how much decorating you do. Ask yourself, “Does this really add meaning and value to my celebration?” If it’s not that important, save your time and energy for aspects of the celebration that you really enjoy.
Budget your time wisely. “Often during the holiday months, many people can be like little hamsters on their exercise wheels,” says Twigg. “They’re running, running, running but not really getting anywhere or even enjoying the ride. That’s why it’s so important to budget your time just as carefully as your money during the holiday season.” Twigg suggests spending the limited amount of time you have on activities that add value, meaning, and significance?to the holidays.
Instead of trying to cook up a feast, focus on simple meals made up of family favorites. Consider also the issue of time vs. money. If you work full-time, you may not want to spend your entire holiday in the kitchen cooking and then cleaning up afterwards. For you, simplification may mean purchasing major components of your holiday meals precooked. Or you may opt for using disposable dinnerware so that no one has to spend time washing dishes.
Nancy Twigg’s book Celebrate Simply: Your Guide to Simpler, More Meaningful Holidays and Special Occasions is available at her website HYPERLINK “http://www.celebratesimply.com” www.celebratesimply.com, Amazon.com and Barnesandnoble.com. It can also be ordered through any Christian or secular bookstore.
Reviewer Cindy O’Halloran is a speaker and author of short fiction and radio dramas. Visit her online at http://www.cohalloran.com
