Practice HOPE during the holiday season
Last year we posted a blog about 10 ways to practice positive childhood experiences (PCEs) during the holiday season. By popular demand, we created a new resource based on the blog that can be downloaded and easily shared. These holiday tips were adapted from our original 10 ways to promote positive experiences fact sheet. Through this seasonal resource, we want to share that no matter what or how you celebrate, there are big and small moments to practice PCEs and promote access to the Four Building Blocks of HOPE. These tips share themes of support, connection, and tradition.
Support
We all need support, whether mentally, emotionally, or physically. Reaching out for help through family members, friends, or event services in your community can help make this time of year easier and filled with more joy. Through our support networks we can build lasting relationships, share in the benefits of our own emotional growth with the children in our lives, and provide a warm environment filled with emotional safety and love.
Connection
Connecting with those we love can be as simple as scheduling a phone or virtual call or even sending a text message. It can also be more personal, like planning intentional alone time with your partner or close friend. For many, finding time to connect with themselves can be very hard. This can be achieved through dedicating 10 seconds at a time to a deep breath and bringing to mind two things we are grateful for. Connecting with others and ourselves is an important part of celebrating the holiday season. It reminds us that we are not alone and how valuable our relationships are in our lives. Whether with family, chosen family, friends, or ourselves, we can show gratitude through moments of connection.
Tradition
Traditions can bring us closer together. Whether it is a tradition that was passed down from many generations or one that is created this year. Traditions can provide insight into our past and connect us to our culture and heritage. People have many ways of celebrating the holidays, and sharing our past traditions or creating new ones can bring us closer together. Our relationships deepen when we share and include people in our past, and we emotionally grow when we have opportunities to engage in our culture, religion, or spirituality.
Help HOPE create the next resource
The HOPE National Resource Center regularly creates new resources to help translate the HOPE framework into practice. These resources are commonly developed after receiving requests from the HOPE community. Share with us what resource you would like HOPE to create next.
