And 100% madness it is! I am specifically referring to this state of chaos we call the holiday season. This time of the year can bring out the best and worst in people. The road to a perfect holiday season ripped from the pages of Better Homes and Garden often leads us on a path paved with stress, uncertainty and downright panic. It’s not like we have any idea when the holidays will arrive each year so that we can plan accordingly! wink, wink… Of course the economy seems to be a perpetual black cloud looming in our lives that can dictate how we carry out our holiday celebrations. But economy aside since it is out of our control (unless you have a solution), let’s focus on what we can control.
Most everyone will have stress in their lives this holiday season. We know that it doesn’t just happen this time of year, but it does seem to be magnified right about now. So what makes the same type of stress – say preparing to entertain guests – have a very different impact on people? Well in the words of Maureen Killoran, “Stress is not what happens to us. It’s our response to what happens and response is something we can choose.” Wow – now that’s deep! Let me ponder that for a moment………………………………….okay – so what she is saying is that today while sitting in an endless line of not moving traffic only to have some one cut me off when it did indeed start to move, my reaction was a choice? You betcha! Wouldn’t you like to know what choice I made? I could have had my Italian temper rear its ugly head, or remained calm knowing that there is nothing I can do about traffic or other people’s actions. All I can control is myself!
This time of year we need to gain clarity and perspective on the madness. Control what we can so that our mental health stays in balance. We tend to forget that our mental health is an important component of our total health. Mental stress will begin to take a toll on our bodies and will manifest itself in ways that will cause our physical health to be compromised.
This year let’s put faith, family, love, and peace over this often unattainable idea of the perfect holiday season and certainly over all this madness!
Wishing you and yours all the best!
barefoot barefood 
Thank you for supporting and motivating a movement of movement toward good thinking and good actions and good life. As the redesign company posted on their Christmas 2011 video–He came that we may have life more and better than our dreams!!
Mozel tov!