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 [ VOICES ](https://www.citywatchla.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=375)

#  Enjoy the Season

Written by Liz Amsden.

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December 25 2023

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ACCORDING TO LIZ - In the mad seasonal struggle to organize and attend parties, to buy those perfect gifts for family and friends without maxing out credit cards, to look good and dress great and appear happy, happy, happy… too many of us lose sight of what a holiday is supposed to be about – enjoying ourselves.

To reduce the day-to-day stress of living in this crazy world and allow a real smile to burble up from our hearts to gentle our lips and emerge in our eyes.

Think about what you enjoyed as a child.

Kicking back by yourself, or among people who won’t expect you to perform either as the hostess-with-the-mostest or the dude with the best toys.

In these terrible times we need to find the light that leads us forward

- snuggling by the fire with your pet
- taking walks hand-in-hand with a loved one
- snowboarding with friends
- having coffee or high tea in a fabulously decorated café
- luxuriating in being home for the holidays
- relaxing
- helping others
- enjoying a day in the sun
- not worrying

For many, this is not only the season to party, it’s too often the season to worry. So put your cares aside and, instead of buying in to the commercials that push purchasing happiness, just relax and explore activities that don’t bankrupt.

Walks along the beach at dusk – yes, even in winter – listening to the lapping of the waves, appreciating how the sunset differs from those in summer, and relishing the occasional sparkle of a festively adorned boat heading home for the night.

Kayaking through the canals of Newport Beach, enjoying the Christmas and Hanukkah decorations.

Having just that coffee in an upscale venue, instead of pretending to like the oddities on its chef’s tasting menu, each course accompanied by another pricey wine.

In colder climes, playing snow football or Frisbee golf.

Noodle balancing races are great fun for the kids, but even more for adults especially with some libations thrown in.

This holiday and moving forward, do you want to be remembered as productive or joyful?

’Tis the season – enjoy it!

*(Liz Amsden is a contributor to CityWatch and an activist from Northeast Los Angeles with opinions on much of what goes on in our lives. She has written extensively on the City's budget and services as well as her many other interests and passions. In her real life she works on budgets for film and television where fiction can rarely be as strange as the truth of living in today's world.)*

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