Ponderings Along the Pathway...FESTIVITY

Hello folks! I hope that you are all enjoying this wonderful holiday season. It is so important to spend as much time as we can with our loved ones and the holidays provide the perfect excuse to get together with family and friends.

Welcome to this month's edition of Ponderings Along the Pathway, an exclusive feature over here on the Path of Positivity. The purpose of this column is to continue with the goal of this blog which is to create a space "designed to inspire, nurture and provide support for the soul by creating a positive path to follow, one project or post at a time". Providing some motivational introspection on the themes we cover each challenge period is one way of achieving this goal.

This month it is all about FESTIVITY and PAT is here to share her thoughts on the subject...

There's a reason why people gather together to celebrate life's milestone's. From the day you are born, your life has been celebrated. Birthdays, holidays, graduations, promotions, weddings, anniversaries, new homes, and retirements.

It's difficult not to be festive with all the celebrations going on, but then again, why shouldn't you be festive?

A good mood not only gives your energy level a surge and your confidence a boost, but it's contagious. Try staying gloomy in a roomful of festive people - almost impossible. And have you ever tried NOT to laugh when everyone around you is giggling or laughing hysterically? It's contagious!

Sometimes you need festivities to pull you out of a funk. My girlfriend got some scary news and is awaiting a test this week. So, what are we doing to pull her out of that deep well of worry? Going to our fave restaurant for lunch and gossiping and giggling!

This year has been tough for me to be festive, especially around the holidays. I lost my hubby of 40 years a few months ago. But he loved Christmas, the family gatherings, the fuss and the fun and the food. So I'm working at keeping my head above the dark waters by continuing to host Christmas dinner with the family and friends we've always invited.

(photo credit by Camille Martin)

And in the Spring, when the snow is melted and the sun is warmer, I'm inviting all his friends over for a memorial - a celebration of his life. He loved sitting in the sun on the new deck, so it will be in the backyard, low-key but festive. Just the way he would have liked it.

Nowadays, I try to celebrate any little thing. Whether I reach a fitness goal, bake a perfect batch of muffins, or finish a difficult pondering, my path is full of festivities that celebrate each step I take, each leap I make, each stumble I recover from, each new friend I meet along the way.

I hope your path is filled with the same, and you stop to recognize the many celebrations in your own life. Throw confetti along the path for the next person to discover and smile at. Keep walking. I hope to see you on our wanderings.

Happy Holidays!

Pat brings up the point, that it is important that we find ways to celebrate even during the hard times. Though it can be extremely difficult to keep going after the loss of someone very special to us, life has a tendency to continue on and we must continue on with it. Otherwise...well it is probably best not to think otherwise. Once we head down a dark path it is often very difficult to find the light again.

The phrase 'one day at a time' or sometimes more appropriately, 'one moment at a time' is the best approach to take. Like Pat, we need to celebrate all the little festivities and accomplishments, even if they seem silly. One day those little celebrations will lead to bigger ones and our journey will become an easier one to travel.

Life is filled with challenges and as we embark on a new year filled with new possibilities, I wish you strength, courage, and of course, much joy, as you walk your own Path of Positivity this coming year!