And now we welcome the new year. Full of things that have never been. – Rainer Maria Rilke

Part of the magic of the new year is all that could be.

All of the opportunities for change and growth are in front of us once again.

Time to be optimistic and think about all the good things that could happen in the new year.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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Love keeps the cold out better than a cloak. – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Short days and long nights are upon us. Winter is here and cold temps will be here soon enough.

This quote paints a good picture.

Let us warm ourselves with love. The kind of love born of action. Taking loving steps towards the happiness of another.

We can fill our lives like this.

Does that sound so much better than the cold? The self-centered, always worried about ourselves, cold.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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https://youtu.be/9jK-NcRmVcw?si=Wc58XfczawidfW0y

Last Friday of 2024!

Time to break out that list for the year and make sure you got everything checked off.

Or if not, get started on next year’s list.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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Cherish your human connections: your relationships with friends and family. – Joseph Brodsky

After Christmas reminder – the relationships are to be cherished, not the stuff.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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“And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,

stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so? It came without ribbons. It came without tags. It came without packages, boxes or bags. And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore. Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before. What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.”

― Dr. Seuss, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!

Quick reminder right before Christmas – even if the presents and everything were stolen last minute by the Grinch – you can still have a Merry Christmas.

In the book, the Whos down in Whoville gather round and sing songs of joy when they wake up and all the trappings of Christmas are gone.

They still found joy in celebrating together without all the stuff.

Christmas is more than gifts and decorations.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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https://youtu.be/LUjn3RpkcKY?si=3XGyk1ikpXLGCT0i

A young Justin Bieber singing to put us all in the Christmas mood.

Whether you like the new, hip pop stars Christmas jams or prefer a classic like Silent Night, find something you like and listen to it today.

Let the music fill you with the Christmas spirit.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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Vanity working on a weak head, produces every sort of mischief. – Jane Austen

An important balance in life has to do with how we look/how others perceive us.

We should probably do our best to present ourselves well as we interact with others.

To work to represent ourselves, our families, our companies, etc. well.

But it’s easy to go too far. Focusing too much on ourselves or worrying too much what others may think of us.

In the end, it’s a heart thing – is it about you or is it about others….really?

A tough question to ask and get right.

But worth thinking about – others vanity might produce every sort of mischief.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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Listened to a podcast last night about the idea in this old daily attitude email….

“Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of – throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself.”

― C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

This is one of my favorite ideas from Mere Christianity.

This quote reminded me a lot of the ideas sent out in these daily attitude emails every day.

A big part of changing for the better is letting go of what we are currently.

At some point we must be willing to tear down our current habits and idiosyncrasies.

It’s hard. It’s painful. It isn’t much fun.

We want to change, but maybe aren’t quite ready to let go of ourselves and our ego in the process.

But it has to happen in order to really change.

We are capable of much more than we ever dreamed.

We are capable of greatness.

If we are willing to be torn down in the process.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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We shall never know all the good that a simple smile can do. – Mother Teresa

Reminder for all of us (or maybe just me?) – Christmas is a time of JOY!

We should be smiling.

Sure, there’s lots of work to do.

Sure, things don’t always go as planned.

Sure, my foot hurts real bad (that was hopefully just for me).

There are a lot of reasons to smile too….

Christmas.

Baby Jesus being born all those years ago.

Friends.

Family.

Presents.

Decorations.

Food.

Let’s all make an effort to smile more this Christmas.

Merry Christmas.

Jake

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I just like to smile. Smiling’s my favorite. – Buddy The Elf

Elf is a classic Christmas movie, following a similar theme to many others.

Buddy the Elf is a “believer” who believes in Christmas, Christmas Spirit, Santa, goodness, etc.

At first he’s scene as the one who has it all wrong by the cynical people he encounters. His positivity and naivete are laughed at and ridiculed.

Then at some point the tide turns – the cynics are proven wrong and the “believer” proves them all wrong in the end. Their eyes are opened and they see him in a new light – the one who had it right all along.

I try to think of the Christmas season as a reminder of how we should act all year long. If we can remember which values are worth believing in.

That’s it’s better to be nice than to be mean.

That money isn’t that important.

That it is better to give than receive.

That being selfless is better than being selfish.

That service and love and faith and grace are to be valued and put above stuff and pride and greed and selfishness.

Christmas really can last all year long – if we believe.

Make it a great day.

Jake

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