The Gift to Give Yourself
One of the beliefs that many people hold about money is that it isn't OK to spend it on themselves. Now, in general, this idea flies in the face of consumerism and the tremendous amount of personal credit card debt that so many American's have accumulated, but there is much truth in it.
People who attend financial seminars (and actually have some amount of money accumulated in some way) often admit that they are holding on to their money because they are so petrified of losing it. The strange thing is that they often do! Lose it, that is. And I'm not referring to losing just the money.
What does this have to do with the holidays? In the biggest sense, it has to do with the whole idea of gift giving in the first place.
 Not withstanding the religious aspect of giving gifts at this time of year, people generally give gifts for a couple of reasons. The purest reason to give another a gift is for acknowledgement of some sort: you love them, you appreciate them, you want them to feel cared about, thought about, etc.
We give gifts of money or other financial value all the time in our society. In the purest sense, we give money to people who do things for us. In other words, they provide their time and energy in exchange for our money.
We pay money for services and then pay extra for extra service. We reward people financially for a job well done. We may provide a bonus if the work they do for us brings us a huge win and we want to share it with them.
There's another motivation for giving that is not so pure. It's when gifts are given with the intention of getting something back. We might give financial gifts in order to create an obligation in some way. We might give people financial gifts to keep them attached because, in our current paradigm, money is necessary to buy the necessities of life. As much as some of us would love it to be different, this is the way it is and probably will be for quite some time.
Now for the topic in question: When was the last time you gave yourself a gift, just because? Not a reward type of gift because you lost 5 pounds or ran 5 miles or because you got a raise or did a good job at something. A gift just because you're alive and because you want to provide yourself with a bit of joy and happiness that a gift may bring?
Gifts like a massage, 30 minutes of peace in the bathtub with candles at night (or in the afternoon!) after a long day, a sauntering stroll along the sea or along your favorite avenue, or the gift of a wonderful fragrance, like a flower or freshly baked bread ~ gifts that may allow you to ponder the existence of anything around as a gift in itself.
At this busy, hurried time of year, sometimes the gift that you forget to give is that gift to yourself that will bring about a bright smile on your beautiful face or a deep, relaxing sigh after a day of shopping or preparing in some way for others, rest for the unending energy your body provides you as you move through this day and all the rest as they come.
Take a moment to ask yourself this question:
If I were giving a gift to myself, what is it most that would feed my soul, make my existence on this planet more meaningful and enjoyable and satisfying? Whatever the answer, if at all possible, give that gift to yourself. Because after all, if you weren't here today, nothing else you do would matter.
Just something to think about (and share with your little ones). Enjoy!
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Elisabeth Donati (aka Miss E) is CEO of Creative Wealth Intl., LLC, a company devoted to empowering individuals of all ages with the tools and information they need to be responsible for themselves and the world. 
