With just over 6wks to Christmas I thought that's a good amount of time to spread that love! Our hearts are full at Christmas time! Full of love and the spirit of giving. Why not share the love and kindness just that little bit further? Let's find ways to bring joy to those beyond our fold by showing them some Christmas kindness. Let’s spread the love this festive season! Together we can come up with some fun and inspiring ways to share the joy. I have included some ideas in this blog, you will find some fun ideas to print out and stick up around your neighbourhood or school. Share them with your community! Then take action. Let’s make this a Christmas to remember!
How can we show love and appreciation in our community?
There are many people that contribute towards our daily lives. There are people behind the scenes that go unnoticed but, without them our lives would not run as smoothly. Like the bus driver that gets your kids to school safely, and on time, each day. Or the person responsible for taking away your rubbish every week. There are people that teach our children. There are people that feed our hungry. So often these people are not recognized for their efforts. What can we do to make a difference? How about we start with a list of people that we can make that extra bit of effort to show our appreciation for. If you want to add anyone in a particular industry, please add them in the comments! We want to include all of these amazing people!
People in our communities
There are people in our communities, all around us, that need to be recognized and thanked, so show some Christmas kindness to these very special people.
Teachers
These are the people that show up every day for the betterment of our children. They work hard, deal with every personality in the book and every emotional problem or bruised knee to be able to guide our kids towards their best potential. They deserve to be recognized and thanked for all their efforts! Make an effort to let them know you appreciate them and everything they do for you.
Policemen
We all know that they are there, behind the scenes, but do we really stop to think about what it means to be a policeman or woman? While they are there, stepping up, we are running away. They are dedicating their lives to being there for us. They deal with conflict on a regular basis so that we don't have to! This is no easy thing and I would like to see us share the love at Christmas time as a thank you, wouldn't you?
Charity workers
Where ever you are in the world there are people in need. We see this, we know it to be true. What we don't see is the people working tirelessly behind the scenes to make a difference. Take a moment to think about these people that are dedicated to helping others. How can we give back some of the love they have given?
Mailman/Garbage collectors/Bus Drivers
Something that you take for granted. That happens as if by magic! But there are people out there that make these things happen. Why not leave a handwritten Thank You note and a bag of lollies on your next collection day. And, bus drivers can get Christmas cards too, why not surprise them this year! Something so small can make someone's day!
Doctors and Nurses
We all have stories of illness and suffering. But, how often do those stories include the Doctor that worked hours on an operation or the nurses that tended the wounds. Yes, we are often dealing with our own emotional trauma when we are in a hospital, but let's reflect on what these people do for us now. Working long hours, being rock steady through any trauma thrown at them, and in 2020, putting their own lives in jeopardy. These people are Fathers, Daughters and Brothers. They are doing everything they can for your Fathers, Daughters and Brothers. What can you do for them?
Ambulance/Coast Guard/Firefighters
Although very different from each other these people are all brave and they all put themselves out there in our hour of need. They rescue the drowning or put out the fire. They take care of your loved ones and get them to the hospital in an emergency. What would you do if there was no one on their way in an ambulance? Or the firefighters had the weekend off? We need these services, as we do all of the above. Without them our comfortable lives would be unrecognizable. How would you thank them at Christmas?
Older people/People Who Live Alone
Do you know anyone in your neighbourhood that lives alone? Christmas can be a difficult time for those that don't have family. Take the time to check in on them, show some of that Christmas kindness. Bring them a plate of food, a box of chocolates, or better yet, invite them to join you. If you have an old age home nearby, why not visit? An hour out of your day could lift their spirits for the rest of the week.
Those Less Fortunate
In this time of abundance and sharing, don't forget those that are living a different reality to yours. There are always opportunities to help at Christmas. There are charity drives, collections etc. You can choose to donate food, clothing, toys or money. Remember that even the smallest donation helps. Buy an extra can of food or packet of noodles. It will make a difference.
Your Fellow Man
Don't forget to include the people you walk passed every day in the street. Just to brighten someone's day! Because, if you make their day, they'll go on to make someone else's! Christmas kindness is contagious!
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'Share the Love' Ideas
- Write and decorate a handwritten note or card.
- Give a plant or flowers.
- Spend time chatting with someone that lives alone.
- Hand out 'compliment cards'.
- Give a Coffee Gift Card to a teacher or your local nurse.
- Give a movie voucher to your local barista.
- Put up a 'Share The Love' poster.
- Pick up rubbish on your local beach or at the park.
- Tell the manager when you get great customer service!
- Donate clothes, toys, books etc. to your local op shop.
- Donate your time, to an op shop or soup kitchen.
- Offer to do a grocery run for someone who could use the help.
- Surprise your children or partner with a heartfelt note in their lunch.
- Give someone a box of chocolates or lollies.
- Strike up a conversation with someone sitting alone in a restaurant.
- Offer to take out the trash, collect the mail or feed the cat while your neighbour is away.
Get creative with your ideas, I'd love to hear what you come up with. Remember, share the love, and enjoy it!
We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give. - Winston Churchill
Stick up my 'Spread The Love posters. If you would like to see some gift ideas take a look at my recommendations HERE
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21 reader comments
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Beautiful post and you have a great list of people in our community that we can reach out to! I love all the ideas! Thanks for sharing
Thanks for reading! I think once we get into the spirit of giving we can make a big difference.
These are incredibly thoughtful ideas that embody what this season should be all about! I love that you identified both the who and the how. Thank you so much for sharing ?
You are so welcome, Yvonne. If we can go into this season of giving with a mindset of sharing we can end 2020 off on a high note!
I realy love this post, it just starts up the real spirit of Christmas and you realy covered everything .Thank you for a necessary wakeup kick to set us off.
So many great ideas I hope that this year we can still see the joy of giving even with this horrible pandemic, I feel like Halloween was light, so I think people are still cautious and on the fence about it. We just need to to be smart about how it is done.
I agree, I think people are definitely a bit cautious. My hope is that we can try to see some light and lift each other up with small gestures of kindness. We can definitely find ways to make it work safely, like putting up a Share The Love poster! :)
It's my pleasure! Let's get everyone in the spirit of giving, 2020 needs a really good Christmas to finish it off on a high note!
I love this time of year and the generosity that fills people’s hearts. Thank you for sharing this cause we all need this reminder!
Just a little mindset shift can make such a difference. Thanks for reading!
What a timely post!!! This really inspires me to give back. Good job!
Fantastic Post. You've inspired me to make a plan...starting tomorrow, that I will do one thing each day and add it to my journal. Maybe I'll buy a coffee for the car behind me. Maybe I'll go say a quick hello to one of my older neighbours who doesn't get many visitors. Thanks for being the catalyst.
That's fantastic! I am so glad I've inspired you! Let's see those ripples reaching out into our communities!
You’ve shared great ideas!! It’s been a year and I just hope we can all find reasons to be thankful and share some love during this period!! Thanks for sharing!!
What a lovely post!!! Such sweet ideas here to put a smile on someone's face! Pinning this :-)
The smallest gestures of kindness can have huge impact! Let's end this year off on a high note!
Thanks Jenny! I'm so glad you like it and thanks for the share!
This is such a beautiful post and an important reminder to not forget the lonely and less fortunate people especially at this time of the year. Thank you for shining the spotlight on the heroes during this difficult time. They are exhausted and underappreciated, so it is great that you give simple, but effective ways to show appreciation.
I'm so glad you liked it, Christina, thank you for reading! I agree, there are so many people who's efforts go unnoticed and need to be acknowledged.
What a great idea. You are so right that we tend to take for granted other people's jobs although they have an impact on our life. So, we should really share more love. Plus, some of your ideas are so easy to carry out, that we should not only remember during Christmas time. Greeting your neighbours, having a chat with the shop assistant, nurse or doctor and saying thank you to all of them when they serve you is just good manners and shouldn't mean an effort.
I agree, there are so many opportunities to share love and kindness but we take so much for granted. As you said, it only takes minimal effort to make a difference.