It’s Christmas season, but the world is celebrating the holidays during an unprecedented time. When usually friends and family would come together to celebrate Christmas, now, people are encouraged to continue staying at home and avoid gatherings. What used to be a joy-filled time for most became more difficult for many families.
But Christmas only comes once a year, and even if we cannot do the things we used to enjoy before this time, it does not mean we should no longer celebrate it. It could be challenging, but there are ways to celebrate the holidays meaningfully, even during the “new normal.”
1. Help someone in the community
The Christmas season is a great time to instill good traits in your family, especially now when so many people are left helpless and vulnerable by the pandemic. You can teach your children to practice kindness and generosity by, for example, offering to run errands for an elderly neighbor or donating to your chosen charity.
2. Schedule video calls with the grandparents
If there’s someone who might be feeling even lonelier than you do, it must be your parents-slash-your kids’ grandparents. It may not be safe to pay them a personal visit this year, but you can make your day by calling them regularly. Make these catch-ups a hundred times better by scheduling, for instance, weekly video calls for the entire family. You can even video call them on Christmas day itself!
3. Go green
The pandemic has had a devastating effect on so many people. Many lost their jobs and a lot of families suffered economic losses. This is a great time, then, to remind your children to be grateful for what they hav and use things wisely. For example, rather than buying new wrapping paper, you can simply recycle gift bags or newspapers to wrap gifts. Instead of throwing away their school artwork or worksheets, reuse them by making Christmas cards out of them.
4. Make new traditions and lasting memories
We might not be looking forward to spending Christmas at home, but we are in the middle of a historical event, so you might want to make this Christmas memorable by making memories. Here are several ways to make fun memories at home:
- You can take videos of your kids answering fun interview questions and you can document the new things you are doing this season.
- You can have each family member write down their wishes (non-material preferably!) on a piece of paper, put them inside a Christmas ornament, and hang them on your tree.
- You can print up photos of the family, decorate them, and make them into Christmas decorations.
- You can even have your kids make time capsules and bury them in your backyard!
These are only a few examples of the things you can do as a family to celebrate the holidays meaningfully. This Christmas might be different from all other Christmases, but it does not mean it is not worth celebrating. We hope you have a meaningful Christmas!