The Grey Tones of the Holiday Season

The Grey Tones of the Holiday Season

Not having any artistic talent to speak of, I nonetheless am learning something of the “design” world. When I say grey tones of Christmas, from a design perspective you don’t just have the bright reds, whites and greens, but you have the shadows, the contrasts, what makes the bright stuff stand out and shine. The same is true in our lives of course: we don’t always surround ourselves with the joy of extended family and holiday traditions, nor immerse ourselves in the nativity, the story of just how much we are each loved by our Abba, creator that he gave us Jesus, the first of many brothers and sisters. And so many in this world celebrate with bright colours this joyous, family time of year.

But for many people, these bright colours do not manifest in their lives, but rather as a sort of negative contrast, highlight the greys with their absence. There are people who have experienced these joys in the past, but can only now mourn their passing; others for whom trauma impairs their ability to access the joy of this season. For those who cannot celebrate these bright colours, their greys are darkened as they try to find ways to endure this time: some will succeed of course more than others, but they all feel the same dark pull, each in their unique way.

For those feeling this dark pull, whether you have completely admitted it to yourself or not, let me say something of my intentions for this time. For those who find themselves outside of the mainstream, there is an opportunity not available to those caught up in the busyness of career, families and social obligations. At some level we all know that we are one human family, all connected to each other in ways we don’t even understand, one of them being that we are all children of the creator: at some level we know this, but for many of us it does not come into our sense of self, who we are in our own eyes. Instead of being God’s/Gaia’s/the Universe’s children, special and gifted each in our own unique way; instead of such a consciousness we get entrapped in feeling less than, reduced or victimized, caught perhaps in a downward spiral dragged deeper by this dark pull. The opportunity I speak of is to simply change our focus: to be grateful for what we have (for we all have a LOT), and to take every opportunity to bless another. Do this as a simple decision, a choice of on what to focus, and whether it happens dramatically or gradually, your experience of yourself and this season will become different. This is my intention then for this period: to be grateful, to remember who I AM, and to bless others as I find the opportunity to do so! J

May you be blessed and a blessing! J

Your brother Dan J

feeling blue . . .

I am feeling a bit blue today, it's that time of year and there is a major blizzard blowing. I'm cooped up alone in the house with my internet friends for company as I work away on business development and getting our new charity going. I am tired and a bit disheartened. . . but I know better than to BE this mood, rather this mood will change just like the weather outside will change - who I AM is more than this mood. From my eastern teacher I learned that there are four sources of energy, and that when our energy is low, we tend to feel depressed even hopeless. By simply taking care of ourselves, by providing ourselves with enough energy, we feel very different about the same circumstances. The four sources of energy then are sleep, fresh fruit and vegetables, fresh air, and meditation or a quiet mind. All of these contribute to increasing or lowering our "life force" or prana: the higher our prana, the better we feel, the lower, the more depressed. There is much more that can be said about this, but I guess my main point is - don't worry too much about feeling blue today, don't get over-impressed by how bad your situation seems when you feel like this. Rather, get more sleep, eat fresh fruit and vegetables, get out in nature (near water is good) and breathe deeply some fresh air, and, practice focusing on something that makes you feel more peaceful, more tranquil. Doing so increases your energy levels, which in turn positively affect your mood. But, remember, your moods and feelings are always changing, for reasons often beyond your conscious awareness or control: as such they are best treated like the weather, something you experience but something that does not define you. Thus you do not have to medicate them, or worry about them, but rather accept your present moment, accept yourself, and in this acceptance, the conditions for a deeper knowledge of yourself are born.


In the end, "feeling blue . . ." without panic or need to medicate, but rather with full self-acceptance, can in the end be a gift, as who you really are becomes more and more available to you; for in the end, your life is a gift, and, you are a gift given to many. Feeling blue can in the end be the wake up call to who you really are . . . :)