Tag: grateful

Thought of the Day: In a Christmas Funk

Posted on by Han_A

Am I the only one not feeling massively festive this year? Perhaps, it’s the Grinch in me talking. I’m currently in my flat, cooking pulled pork for an overdue lunch in a barely decorated living room. And, unbelievably so, Christmas is tomorrow. It really doesn’t feel like it, Maybe it’s because it’s in the middle of the week, which feels a bit underwhelming.

Don’t get me wrong, I did try to manufacture the spirit within myself, but to no avail. Blasting Christmas songs, which I allowed to invade my shower playlist from late November*. Most recently, heading to The Range (Dollar Tree-vibes for those outside of the UK) and aimlessly searching around for décor to hang in my flat that would conjure up this elusive Christmas spirit. It seemed like a good idea when I entered the doors of the store. Unfortunately, others had already had that idea. But several hours, if not days, before me. So after spending 10-15 minutes browsing overpriced Christmas trees and empty shelves, I decided to call it a day. My debit card was probably grateful for the decision.

I do wonder if this Christmas funk is linked to basically abandoning the purchasing of gifts at this time of year. I stopped doing so a few years ago, along with most card giving. Although there is an occasional sense of guilt, most of the time I’m fine with it. For those around me, I’ll usually compensate with a nice birthday gift, since I take those more seriously. Then I start to think about just how closely I’ve defined Christmas with STUFF. And lots of meaningless stuff, to be precise.

Consumerism has really warped my view of what at its heart, is meant to be about Christ, joy and the priceless gift of salvation. So that’s what I’ll be reflecting on tomorrow and being grateful for. I hope you’re able to hold tight to the festive spirit (if you’re in it!) and feelings of joy and gratitude this Christmas. Delegate where you can, blast good music and make sure you at least have a blissful nap or two to round off a rollercoaster of a year.

Merry Christmas!

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*🎶What’s on my Christmas 2025 playlist 🎶:

  • Go Tell It on the Mountain by Annatoria
  • Joy to the World by Cece Winans
  • Sunday Service Choir’s Go Tell It album

So I just smile…

Posted on by Han_A

Smiling is a beautiful thing- and I mean a genuine smile. A crescent moon of happiness on the face. A snapshot of laughter. When the joy inside of you bubbles over it can’t help but show from the outside too. I fully believe no-one can do too much of it. In fact, it doesn’t take much to feel like London is a miserable place for many that needs more smiles. I’ll often be quite tired and focused on my commute to work but when I get a smile from a fellow commuter on the train- although usually taken aback and suspicious in the first few seconds I always return the smile. And as we silently stand radiating mutual positivity in this weird but normal facial language, things change. My mood lifts a little as I go back to whatever I was doing and I realise, wow I really needed that.

women s white and black button up collared shirt
Exhibit A: A smile Photo by bruce mars on Pexels.com

Similarly, when I’m out and about, the people I actually find that smile the most freely and often are children. Especially babies, they have no logic behind their smiles sometimes but they will happen anyway. It’s therefore interesting that as we grow older we become more cautious with our smiles; only directing them towards we know and trust. Our smiles become sacred currency not many can access. We start to rationalise what should be a natural and easy thing, meaning we start to much less of it.

There’s so much in this life that is beautiful and that we should be grateful for; I try to remind myself of that every day (and trust me, it may be obvious but it can still be hard.) Even if you reflect on your current situation and 8/10 things are going wrong, smile because you have the other two things to be grateful for.