Dear Parishioners,

The Christmas season is a season of joy and catching up with family or friends. However, it can be a stressful time especially for those who feel the pressure of making these times great, parents who need to find the perfect toy for a child or for those who have lost those they have loved in the previous year. As St. Paul says, when one part of the body of Christ suffers, we all suffer. So, we should be mindful when people are not in a celebrating mood: since being forced to celebrate may just make one even more depressed.

Holiday depression can be expressed in many ways: sad feelings, headaches, over-eating, over-drinking or even insomnia. If you find that you are having any of these symptoms, you may even feel guilty for not being happy when everyone else is and not want to bring anyone else down. Isolating yourself in this way is not very helpful to you or anyone else. You should try to share your feelings with those you care about and they may actually get better as a result. In fact there are plenty of things one can do to have a joy-filled holiday. One of the most important things we can do is to set realistic expectations.

We will be disappointed if we expect everything to work out like a Hallmark movie. If you lost someone you care about, it might be time to cherish those other people in your life you do care about but may have neglected. After all, Holidays are a great time to reconnect with people. If you have no one in your life, then you might be able to find some sort of charity work and volunteer your time. The important thing is not to isolate yourself.

Whenever things seem to be going wrong, that may be God’s signal to call us into deeper prayer. God whispers in the pleasures of life and shouts in the pains of life. When we pray, we practice focusing on the present moment and we begin to realize that we live in the present and can find God who is always present. Jesus came at the first Christmas so that we could know God and be in relationship with Him. Focus on Jesus and everything else falls into place.

Merry Christmas and God bless!

Father Carter