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I saw a post on Facebook recently about gift giving at Christmas time and how every child deserves presents at Christmas.


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Yes, all children absolutely deserve to be celebrated and what child doesn’t want presents, right?

They are fun, plus getting new stuff is always enjoyable… but what if presents are not what our children are truly yearning for at Christmas time?

What if… what our children want most is for us to be truly present with them – to really connect with them?

Our children are gorgeous, delicate, tender and sensitive beings. As are we…

But how often do we stop and feel this? There is so much that we need to do on a constant basis that we can get caught up in this and our children unfortunately get overlooked in the process.

Let’s take a moment and ask ourselves when was the last time we tenderly brushed our daughter’s hair (without having to rush out the door when finished) or spent time laughing with our son (while the washing up waited)?

Maybe the best gift we can give our children this Christmas, and every Christmas, is simply our presence. That is, showing up in full, not distracted or busy in any way.

This is a gift we can give them everyday too. It doesn’t cost any money; it comes already wrapped, and will put a smile on their face like no other present in the world. No material item can ever replace the joy of being seen and connected to by our parents. It is absolutely priceless in fact!

As a young friend of mine shared on this particular Facebook post, “Presence, connection and care is what we truly want from another, as it is long lasting, whereas presents are short lived.”

So this Christmas let’s take the time to give the gift of being truly present to our children.

We can even start now, by practicing being present with ourselves. Click here for some great meditations that can support this.

#presenceisthenewpresent

What do you feel is more important, presents or presence? Share in the comments below.

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  • In a perfect world we would do this with our children every day, not just Christmas! I know there are families who do that, which is great. But I find it is no easy task at the best of times!

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  • Yes,ur presencis most important. Not only with Xmas, but every day of our life love and attention is of the most high value to our children and spouses, our family and friends.

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  • Agree with this article. Children need our love and our attention – means more to them in the long run than toys they outgrow and throw away.

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  • Your Presences I say is the best thing you can give your child for Christmas. Some poor children get neither for Christmas they get nothing and I really feel for them. All children deserve both or just your presences if you can’t afford to buy them anything. I hate to think how many children go without anything at Christmas there are plenty of charity’s that can help with the material things at Christmas You just have to ask for help But a child should NEVER go without your PRESENCES ANYTIME

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  • One of ours asked for a netball uniform to play netball. Her Mum thought it a bit strange as she had never talked about playing netball apart from trying to shoot goals on the ring on the end of their swing set. A few days later during a discussion she actually wanted a uniform because she reckoned it looked pretty. A totally unexpected response. She asked for a couple of other things that were anything but safe, then they reached a compromise. Santa provided part of the uniform for a volunteer group. Mum and Dad waited until the rest of it was needed before they bought it a few weeks later.

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  • great read thanks for sharing

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  • Presence is certainly more important at a special time of the year.

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  • This is so true, i know alot of people that seem to forget this and go overboard with presents


    • Me too, and it is shame because when all the presents are opened the kids are still left looking for presence.



      • yep and time spent with the family is time well spent. Yes i definately took some time out on the busy christmas day, just to chill with my kids. it made the day so special and my busy day paused for awhile and i really enjoyed myself!

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  • Kids and aged people need our full attention and we need to be fully in the moment with them without any distractions. It is the most wonderful gift you can give to another person.


    • We can have both – it is about knowing what is important.

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  • Presence, absolutely! Gifts don’t mean a thing if you don’t give your time to your kids. And the time you spend with them, well, that’s what they will remember when they grow up. Not the presents.

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  • Presents sure, but nothing beats the present of having true presence with another…

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  • For me presence is more important, and not only with christmas but every day. I love it when people are reallly present with me, listening, open and not busy with other things. So for me presence is the biggest gift, to give and to receive.


    • I agree, to be with someone you feel is absolutely ‘there’ with you is so very healing and very much needed in our world today with all the busy-ness that is running rampant.

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  • For me the biggest gift with christmas (and every day) is presence. Not only with children, but with everybody. I love it when I feel that somebody if truly with me, listening, open and not busy with other things. For me that is the biggest gift, to give and to receive.

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  • yeah obviously we are their priority just as they are ours! i think that it is not the material item you give but the fact that you want them to be happy and know that they are loved.

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  • Lke he

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