Now is the Winter of our Discontent

The ber months are here, and with it is the cold Siberian wind that stir some kind of anxiety and discontent in the days to come.

More than the chill that hits deep in the bone, the cold discomfort comes from our expectations of what our holidays should be and how we ought to end the year – having found that significant other, or perhaps wanting to spend a New Year in full bravado - another year, another glory.

But the more that we spend our Christmas’ with empty arms and the more we end our years with meaningless hurrahs – the more that we feel incomplete. And the more we want to change how we ought to spend next year with a little bit of a breakthrough…

So here I am, scribbling my thoughts on how to survive such discontent.

Sometime every Jan of Feb, we usually declare our good tidings for the year, hoping that it would be better. And when the ber months are ushered in, and not having achieved fifty-percent (50%) of our declared wants is often a cause of depression

One hundred twenty more days to go, and one hundred twenty more chances to make this year right…

More than anything else, I think most of the discontent comes from our own self imposed expectations - to be this and to be that by this time… And should we fail to be this and to be that by that time – we fall into depression.

This morning, they were playing the song “Pasko na Sinta ko.” For the unattached, and most specially those at 30 plus and still single – the song is a resounding reminder that having a special other defines the “Merry” in Christmas. This too is all about expectation.

Surviving discontent in the cold months is all about managing our own expectations. It was a never a fairy tale life – and could never expect someone charming hopping around with the shoe and a promise of happy ever after.

More than anything else, rather than wallowing ourselves in discontent – we can always choose our own attitude. That the operative word in the coming holidays should be either “Merry” or “Happy.”

Discontent is a state of mind. A happier mind set will make things feel better.