Make your holiday cards merry with metta

I wish I could say sending holiday cards is always a joyful experience for me. Instead, too often during the busy holiday season, this ritual is only cozy and quaint in my imagination. Over the years, however, I’ve found ways to make writing holiday cards more creative, more mindful, and more meaningful.

Now, I even look forward to it. Here’s how you can, too:

1. PRUNE–AND I’M NOT TALKING ABOUT PUDDING: Holiday lists can grow like an untended garden. But who wants to send holiday greetings to people who made it to our list simply by dint of having sent us a card once in the ’90s? The trick to enjoying writing holiday cards is choosing quality over quantity. Pare your list back to people you truly want to connect with in a brief, but meaningful way this season.
2. TAKE STOCK WITH A STOCK PHRASE: You don’t need to come up with an original message for each card. Find a phrase that sums up what the holiday season means to you. For me, this is a season where I enjoy the sparkle of miracles and joy, so my stock phrase that I write on each card reflects that sentiment.
3. REPEAT YOURSELF: Writing the same phrase over and over transforms from a mechanical routine to a meaningful ritual when you infuse the words with the sanctity of a mantra or prayer. Each time you write the words, feel your desire for these sentiments to grow in your heart and in the world.
4. MAKE IT MERRY WITH METTA: Now that you have a manageable list and a meaningful message practice a modified form of metta meditation as you pen your cards. Also known as loving-kindness meditation, in this practice you send good wishes first to yourself, then others, in a structured format. Although it’s usually practiced on the meditation cushion, in this version you can practice metta at your desk or table as you compose your holiday cards. Whether you are simply signing your name to a pre-printed card, or adding a short greeting to a handmade card, you can do this:
   • As you write your message or sign your name, gently inhale as you breathe in the quality of, say, miracles or joy.
   • As you slowly exhale, send the wish for those qualities to yourself: “May I know true joy in this season. May I experience miracles.”
   • As you fold the card and slip it into the envelope, repeat this process, this time wishing the same for the recipient, “May you know true joy in this season. May you experience miracles.” Fill your heart with the wish on the inhalation, and generously send it out on the exhalation with each gesture.
5. SEALED WITH A WISH: Vary the mantra, and the mood, as you go. Play around, be creative, and find as many opportunities as you can to “send” good wishes to yourself and others as you write, seal, and send your cards.

Follow these simple steps, and when you’re done, you just might find yourself smiling—or even wanting to send a few more cards to some of those people you pruned from your list.

Add JOY to your holiday: Joy in Every Moment, a beautifully illustrated “life coach in a book” by Tzivia Gover makes the perfect holiday gift!

GIVE THE GIFT OF JOY