A New Trend with Christmas Trees for ALL Faiths and Cultures

Possibly the most well known symbol for Christmas - that has delighted families and friends for hundreds of years while at the same time frustrated superintendents, cleaning staff, and environmentalists to the same degree is the Christmas tree.

For those who celebrate Christmas the TREE is a big thing. For most of the rest of world though, and actually the majority of the world, this time of year can mean the same as every other day, or it might possibly mean spinning a dreidel (if Jewish and/or a gambler) and eating delicious and fat filled deep fried potato latkes (once per year isn’t so bad… not 8 days worth though!)

A significant issue that has arisen with the use of Christmas trees relates to what multi-faith families can or should do.

This idea came as a result of speaking with one of my clients who converted from Christianity to another religion who, although content with her choice and new religion, misses celebrating with a Christmas tree.

Further, she wants her young son to experience all of the fun that can be had with decorating the tree and the general festivity of decorating, etc.

With so many multi-faith families these days and with so many people who are not religious but would like to celebrate the holidays for the pure fun of it, I would like to propose an alternative for celebrating the holiday season for ALL faiths, while at the same time using a tree (preferably a fake one):

A Gratitude and Wishing Tree!

Rather than the some old tree each year, and having it represent Christmas (why should those who are not Christian go without?), make it a tree upon which your family can hang lights, bulbs, AND words and pictures of people, experiences, achievements, goals, and other material items that they are both grateful for and that they desire in the upcoming year.

This by-passes the more religious nature of the tree and makes it fun for ALL people of ALL faiths and religions (even those with no religious affiliation).

In my eyes Christmas and Hanukah are primarily about gratitude, not unlike Thanksgiving. With this in mind and to foster the experience, why not make it a Gratitude and Wishing Tree!?

This also, of course, makes sense to have the gifts beneath it AND it is multi-denominational for all faiths AND children (adults too) who have always wanted to experience what it is like.

I would even encourage putting a menorah (Hanukah) on the top and hang dreidels off the pine needles! – just don’t light the menorah or you may have a personal experience similar to Chevy Chase and the Griswold’s in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation!

If you decide to do this, definitely take a photo of it and send it to me. If you allow it, I will post it and we can view and delight in the many creative Gratitude and Wishing Trees and possibly begin a global trend!

What Is In a Friendship: Giving OR Receiving?

Through the best of times and ideally through the worst of times, there are people in our lives who we can count on for support, an open mind, and a caring nurturing way of being - who sometimes feel like they are more family than our own blood relatives - our friends.

True friends, are those dear souls who we celebrate life with, grow with, share in the spice of life with, and who support us through our tough times as we also support through theirs.

Just speaking with a friend who unconditionally loves you and will listen to what you have to say without judgement, and instead holds the space for you to ‘get it out’, is absolutely important and useful to our evolution as people.

Friendship, though, is not just a one way street. A true friendship is a mutual exchange of aligned connection. This means supporting each other, listening to each other, working together through the thick and thin of life, doing best to stay open to each other even if there are issues between the two.

I hope that you are like me and have had close friendships with a variety of incredible people throughout your life.

At the same time I have seen the reality that relationships can change dramatically over time.

I remember having nearly 0 friends growing up - until high school, when my whole life changed. I had a dream high school experience with many great friendships and many great adventures and experiences. I recall overall, that high school life just seemed to get better and better each year – The movies American Pie and High School Musical, to a degree (and without singing), mirror my teen experiences. I even recall times when my group of male friends and I would go out, it felt like we were a posse of sorts!

After high school and into University, although I made many friendships while some old ones dissolved, my dream social life continued up until my 3^rd year, when most of us became more serious about having to face the idea of what type of ‘career’ we would pursue when we completed school for the first time in our lives within 1 or two years.

Life began to change - not just for me, but for everyone I knew. Friends moved to different cities, different countries, began having families and of course priorities changed. This was and is the natural flow of life and of the rhythm of being human; it is also the law of attraction.

Over the past year especially, I have noticed a dramatic change in friendships both personally as well as for many many countless others I speak with.

As someone who is a natural ‘giver’ and who many would agree with is a ‘giver’ I know one when I meet one and throughout my life I have met many.

One particular change or trend that I have noticed over the past year is the number of friendships that are changing. Perhaps over the past couple of years you have seen a number of friendships decrease or dissolve and have been wondering ‘what the #@*% is going on?’

The great news is you are not alone!

Many ‘givers’ are awakening. ‘Givers’ give to others and truly care about others, while expecting little to nothing in return.

(You are likely a ‘giver’ if you read these Be-Inspired articles or blogs.)

You see, ‘givers’ typically give and have little to nothing left for themselves. ‘Givers’ are also not very good at receiving as they have been practicing and have become masters at giving not receiving. ‘Givers’ typically fight for the underdog, want the best for everyone, and often ‘wear their hearts on their sleeve’.

For those of us who are like this, we are entering interesting times. For those of us considered ‘givers’, we have a great number of friends who we likely consider as friends and who are great receivers. In fact, when it comes to the law of attraction, people who give typically attract those who receive just as ‘receivers’ typically attract ‘givers’.

In most cases, both ‘givers’ and ‘receivers’ do what we do to such an extreme, that we were likely ‘givers’ or ‘receivers’ since we were very young and without any awareness whatsoever.

Recently though, those of us who give, while at the same time are not great at receiving, are beginning to awaken.

As a giver who is awakening who is now looking for respect, care, a helping ear from the receiving ‘friends’, it is becoming very obvious and common that those ‘friends’ – the ‘receivers’, are not willing, not interested, or do not have the drive to do so. This results in the ‘givers’ feeling a rift with these ‘friends’ and a ‘parting of ways’ or the connection dissolving.

This ‘phenomenon’ has been growing over the past year and the realization that is arising from the awakening is that those ‘friendships’ were possibly and likely not necessarily true friendships in the first place, but rather more of a reciprocal and mutually beneficial relationship between a ‘giver’ and a ‘receiver’.

Some of the indicators or potential flags that show that you might be in this type of conditional ‘giver’ and ‘receiver’ relationship vs an authentic unconditional friendship include the receivers saying or showing:

-“My family is my priority and I just can’t take time away from them”

(ironically, when THEY NEED you, they will take time away from their family to get your help for themselves)

-‘Time’ or ‘scheduling’ issues’ in getting together with you

-Forgetfullness and therefore missing schedule get-togethers – after the 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th times

-You will hear from them when THEY want to speak with you, rather than when you contact them

– this is usually clear when you leave messages and they do not return your call until they are ready (meaning longer than a few days)

-They say they will call, e-mail, or text you but do not until it is convenient for them or at all

These indicators are more common that one would think and it is important to acknowledge that these are potential signs that the ‘friendship’ is likely not mutual and that conversations need to be had to sort it out or to just let them go.

Five Powerful Elements to Consider About Friendships:

1. True friendship is about mutual exchange and respect of each other – giving to each other, supporting each other, and growing together - with no excuses.
2. To experience and attract true friendships – that include respecting you, who you are, and your opinion about life - YOU must respect you, who you are, and your own opinion about life and not accept friendships that will do anything less.
3. To develop a true friendship, rather than a 50/50 inauthentic connection, giving unconditionally is a must. This is different from giving and then expecting the other to give back, which would constitute a conditional ‘friendship’. 
4. It is important to be at peace with being on your own and without friendships. This will be far more useful than having ‘one-sided friendships’ that you give your power and energy away to. Although at the same time, be open to the fact that new ones will come in.
5. Be compassionate and give your ‘friends’ A second chance… not 5 second chances, not 10 second chances, A second chance… a chance to show that they are also willing to and interested in supporting, giving to, and growing the friendship.

I have gone through several stages in my own life, in which the friendships I had were with people I considered as my soul brothers and sisters. Over time, as their focus and priorities changed and as did mine it was inevitable that those connections would end or simply not exist as they once did.

The light, at the end of tunnel so-to-speak, is that along with your changes and a clearer understanding of what you are looking for in a true friendship, new friendships will also enter into your life.

Now that we, as ‘givers’, are becoming more conscious about learning how to give AND hopefully practicing receiving, new friendships that are created will have a wonderful potential to last for the rest of this lifetime.

If you are reading this and realizing that you are more of a ‘receiver’, and YOU are awakening as well, consider this an opportunity to reconnect with those ‘givers’ who have likely been giving all along.

Show your gratitude to them – call them, tell them how important they are to you because of who they are (not because they give to you and you still need them). More importantly – be committed to the connection and to growing it, respecting them and being a part of a true friendship in giving and/or supporting them on the few occasions they call out to you for help.

Either way, although it is not easy sometimes to let go of once important connections, it is important to do so to allow the even more profound connections that are awaiting you.

As some of the old ‘friendship’ doors close, many new wondrous ones are about to open!

“To me, fair friend,

you never can be old

for as you were ~

when first your eyes I eyed,

such seems your ~

beauty still.”

-Shakespeare