“Freshly cut Christmas trees smelling of stars and snow and pine resin—inhale deeply and fill your soul with wintry night.” John J. Geddes
Welcome to the last Positive Media Playlist of 2020. I hope that you have found the playlists to be enjoyable and useful over the past few months.
This playlist includes ways stay body positive over Christmas, the strange, macabre and bizarre aspects of Christmas and some fun activities for kids and their parents.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year.
Financial Wellbeing: New Year’s Resolutions for Personal Financial Fitness
Many people go on diets or exercise regimes in January and typically people start with lots of enthusiasm but then they quickly give up. Shaping up your finances is a similar challenge – it is about making this a habit and continuing throughout the year. Getting help is important, whether that is professional financial advice or just a friend or family member who can hold you to account. Making time to review how you’re doing and reflect on your successes (perhaps a reward for achieving a goal) could also help you. Here we set out eight resolutions that could help to improve your financial health.
Read: How to stay body positive over Christmas
The body positivity movement has been slowly growing over the past few years and has now well and truly reached the mainstream. However, as much as you might want to, it’s hard to maintain this acceptance of yourself and your body all year long. With the pressure to “look your best” for Christmas party season coupled with a never-ending supply of chocolates and mince pies at work, staying body positive over the festive period can be a challenge. Even if your grandma isn’t quite up to speed with the #EveryBodyIsBeautiful hashtag on Instagram and makes some poorly judged comments over Christmas lunch, try not to let it get you down. This should be a happy time – so here’s how you can stay as body positive as possible over the festive period.
Sustainable Living: 21 eco-friendly Christmas tips
How to ease off the rampant consumerism – and save the planet’s natural resources – without being a Scrooge at Christmas. Here are 21 cockle-warming tips for a greener festive season.
Podcast: Weird Christmas
When it comes to Christmas, not everything is jolly, joyful and innocent. This podcast gets into the strange, macabre and bizarre aspects of Christmas and the Holiday season. Listen here.
Netflix: Angela’s Christmas
Set in Ireland in the 1900s, this film tells a story of the power of family and the innocent desire of a child to keep her family safe during Christmas. A heart-warming tale based on a story by Frank McCourt. Watch the trailer here.
For the Children: 101 of the Best Christmas Activities for Kids (and Their Parents)
Christmas time is probably one of the all-time favourite family holidays, filled with twinkling fairy lights, seasonal smells, and of course, the highlight for kids everywhere, the arrival of Santa himself. But entertaining the kids over the holidays, when we are often cooped up indoors, can sometimes be challenging. Worry not – we’ve got it covered! Here are 101 of the best Christmas Activities for Kids (and their Parents!).
Yoga: YouTube
50 min Christmas Self Care Yoga Tutorial – The holidays can be a little stressful, so it’s the perfect time to really take care of yourself most. Eat good food, keep active, stay social, hydrate, avoid drinking and do all the yoga! Here’s a little 50min guided flow for you to get you in the festive spirit (or to help you recover from it).
Meditation: YouTube
A Dream Before Christmas (GUIDED SLEEP MEDITATION STORY) – Create the perfect Christmas eve atmosphere in the run-up to the festive season. This gentle guided sleep meditation story will take you to a peaceful village on the night before Christmas. When you close the door to the cold night and prepare to relax and sleep, you may be transported into a very festive dream… It’s perfect for insomnia, general stress relief and for people with overactive minds, especially during the festive season.
TedTalks: How We Used Christmas Lights to Fight a War
Colombia is a country of exceptional beauty and promise, and it’s also a country where the F.A.R.C. guerrilla movement has incited violence for 50 years. “In my lifetime, I have never lived one day of peace in my country,” says Jose Miguel Sokoloff. This ad executive and his team saw an opportunity to sway guerrillas’ hearts and minds with Christmas trees and personalized messages strategically placed throughout the jungle. A look at the creative messages that have led thousands of guerrillas to abandon the war, and the key insights behind these surprising tactics. Watch the talk here.
Christmas Concert: Home for Christmas with Discovery Gospel Choir
A live streamed event, direct from our living rooms to yours. Join Discovery Gospel Choir for an evening of music, poetry, songs, stories and much more. Enjoy our Christmas favourites from the comfort of your own home as you share in this intimate performance with Ireland’s leading multicultural choir.
Date: Saturday 19th December, 7pm
How to Book: Tickets are free but donations welcomed, book on Eventbrite.
The Mindful Traveller 