Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, Love Divine; Love was born at Christmas; Star and angels gave the sign. ~ Christina Rosetti
Month: December 2019
🤗 Feel Good Hack ~ Christmas
Live in the moment.
We can get bogged down with preparing the Christmas dinner and making sure that everyone is having a great time. When this happens you realise that Christmas went by in a blur, for the wrong reasons. Take time this year to watch your loved ones open their presents. Savour your food and drink. Be grateful for who you’re spending your time with. When you focus on the good things in your life, you get more good things to be grateful for.
A Christmas Poem ~ Gerard Manley Hopkins
Moonless darkness stands between
by: Gerard Manley Hopkins
Moonless darkness stands between.
Past, the Past, no more be seen!
But the Bethlehem-star may lead me
To the sight of Him Who freed me
From the self that I have been.
Make me pure, Lord: Thou art holy;
Make me meek, Lord: Thou wert lowly;
Now beginning, and alway:
Now begin, on Christmas day.
🤗 Feel Good Hack ~ Counting Your Blessings Really Works!
Make Time for Gratitude and Appreciation
Creating a routine of writing down three things we feel grateful for each day helps us focus more on what we’re grateful for in life. Starting a gratitude journal can help too.
Today’s Poem ~ Christmas Bells
Christmas Bells
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!
And in despair I bowed my head;
“There is no peace on earth,” I said;
“For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!”
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!”
🍎 Health Hack ~ Need a Mood Boost?
Indulge in some tasty foods such as dark chocolate, leafy greens and other folate-rich foods, blueberries, chamomile or lavender tea, and magnesium-rich seeds such as pumpkin or sunflower seeds. Nutrients in these foods are thought to be related to emotional health.
Christmas Eve ~ O Holy Night
O Holy Night
Placide Cappeau
O holy night, the stars are brightly shining,
It is the night of the dear Saviour’s birth;
Long lay the world in sin and error pining,
‘Till he appeared and the soul felt its worth.
A thrill of hope the weary world rejoices,
For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn;
Fall on your knees, Oh hear the angel voices!
O night divine! O night when Christ was born.
O night, O holy night, O night divine.
💫 Inspiring Quote ~ It’s All About Love
“Those who love will be loved.” ~ from the movie, Song of Napoli
✒️ Writers’ Wisdom ~ It’s All About the Dialogue
“[A]lways get to the dialogue as soon as possible. I always feel the thing to go for is speed. Nothing puts the reader off more than a big slab of prose at the start.”
~ P. G. Wodehouse
