When the calendar flips over to December 1st, many of us are inundated with emotions of times past. Arriving in the last month of the year is like coming home from a long trip, wearily walking in the door and dropping your bags. This time of year evokes childhood memories deep in our amygdala, many of which are the happiest times of our lives. It’s like stepping into an old pair of jeans, the comfort of the smell of fresh baked cookies, the joy of laughter, the clinking of wine glasses filled to the rim. Childhood thoughts, fantasies of impossible feats, of candy canes by the dozen, pfeffernusse and hot chocolate. The joy of ripping open that gift that you eyed under the tree for weeks, only to discover that it required batteries. The feelings that we have during this month remind us of how fun it is to be human. When our senses are stimulated, we are so much happier. Why do we get lost the rest of the year? Focused on building wealth, on getting back into the gym, on starting or ending a bad habit. Why can’t we always feel as we do during December? How much happier would we be if we strived for more amazement in the other eleven months? Would it not be incredible to have the excitement in March that we do right now? The human mind and body are capable of endless possibilities, the only thing that stands in our way is the social construct which we’ve been taught. I challenge you to try to enjoy the crackling of a wood fire in June. Put on some flannel pajamas in September. Fill a stocking full of wrapped gifts and give it to your wife in July. Eat shortbread often. Our lives are short, this much we know. I suggest we radically change our perception of what it is to live and to fill your life stocking with as many December-related festive feelings as you can, all year round.
