In December, I have the feeling that ‘Santa Claus’s radio’ becomes the favorite radio of all stores. I heard everywhere well-wishing for happiness, love, romance, fairy tales with fairies and princes on white horses, magic, and thousands and thousands of surprises – it seems that all you have to do is make a wish and that is it, Santa Claus will make it come true!
During Christmas and New Year’s Eve, on social media, it seemed that everyone was super happy, everyone received the presents of their dreams and was living the best possible life, in the most wonderful world. I know a lot of people who are alone in this period and I also know people who are alone with someone else. I believe we should not forget that, beyond any recommendation to spend time with others, we should feel good with ourselves, first and foremost. The relationship with ourselves is the foundation of any solid relationship with others.
A good relationship with myself means that my well-being comes first, that I learn to be happy with my solitude, to accept it, to use it as a creative space. Often, we seek to be with other people, to be in crowded place, somewhat aggressively, to avoid being by ourselves. If we think about the kid we once were, if we make an imaginative effort to bring him/her to light, maybe we can show this kid a bit of attention and love.
I do not mean it in the sense of becoming narcissists, of not seeing anyone but just our own self; not even close. I mean to love ourselves up to a point where we can (also) feel good when we are alone, and to be in sync with ourselves when we are together with others.
When we take good care of our own being, our own solitude, with music, books, good movies, philosophy, art, history, when we learn to feel good in our own space, we will know how to better choose our friends, we will have more understanding, empathy, generosity, towards others.
I hope that this year we will be more generous with ourselves and with others.