Miracles. Christmas is the time for miracles. Not the ones you might dream about that might be earth shattering but rather the small ones that come from the relationships in families, friends and community. This time of year our level of consciousness about what really is important comes to the fore. Although there is lots of activity and bustling about relative to the gift aspect of the holidays it really is about the people, the children and the little miracles that we each can create through smiles, laughter and compassion. So as we take time off this week from our busy lives and the challenges that we all face please pause for a few days and be thankful for the opportunity to live where you do, to have great friends and co-workers, and for the next generations that will shape our future. May everyone have a wonderful and joyous Christmas and an amazing 2014!

“When you get to be a certain age, you come to realise that the real Santa Claus is not the guy who comes down the chimney on Christmas Eve. The real spirit of Santa becomes what you can give rather than what you get. The magic comes from you when Santa lives in your heart.” — Patty Hansen

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Wish. This time of year we hear a lot about wishes. We all like to receive presents but I want to focus more on what we can give rather than what we might receive. We all have one wish we share — to see our social and business community recover, grow, and prosper. So the biggest thing we can all give this Christmas is the hand of friendship, cooperation, and motivation to get all of us working together to toward this common goal. My wish is that it is all about the “we — not me!” Let’s move forward and grow our business and social environment together and create the best possible future for our children and our grandchildren. As you express your wishes this season let’s focus on the future and how we can all impact that with our passions and our hard work.

“Be the change that you wish to see in the world.” — Mahatma Gandhi

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Value. At this time of year we hear a lot of ads about value. In order to really understand this we need to know what real value means to you. If you are buying something for yourself or another person then this measure is really the worth, importance, or usefulness of the item you are purchasing. In very simple terms you define the value not the person trying to sell it to you! Let’s turn that around — assume you are providing a service to someone, your community, your employer, or your customers. Are you working to provide value to all of them? Are you taking the steps to understand what they need and how they will react to what you are selling? If all of us were to take this approach our community would get better and better — and that would really be the spirit of Christmas. Let’s all get in the spirit! It really is just the practice of using the Golden Rule in all you endeavour.

“Try not to become a man of success, but rather a man of value.” — Albert Einstein