Cozy Christmas
Language lesson of the week:
Part 1 of 2:
How do native speakers of your target language relate to Christmas?
Is it generally the same as in your culture?
In most Russian-speaking countries, for example, it's not the same.
Eastern Orthodox Christmas is on January 7th instead of December 25, but, regardless, New Year's is generally a much bigger deal. Why?
During the Soviet era, people weren't allowed to celebrate religious holidays, so New Year's, in a sense, became everyone's "Christmas" that they could all celebrate together. This attitude toward the biggest winter holiday has continued even after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Know the nuances behind big holidays like Christmas in your target language and historical reasons for these nuances.
Part 2 of 2:
For your target language, think about what customs people partake in and what phrases are typically said during or around these customs.
Like with any phrases, know the answers to the following questions: How exactly do you say them? When do you say them? Who says them? (Is it normal if YOU say each of them? Don't overlook how gender and age can dictate what is socially accepted).
This time of year inherently comes with a mixture of feelings. I've always loved Christmas, and some of my warmest childhood memories are from Christmas-time. Giving and receiving presents is great, but the lights, decorations, and smiles in cold weather I think sum up what I'm fondest of. In my hometown, temperatures plummet from where they were in the summer, and the idea of being indoors with a blanket and a hot cup of coffee suddenly becomes more seductive than during other times of the year. Simply put, the Christmas season is cozy.
But with this coziness comes an important choice:
1) You can become dependent on comfort and gradually avoid more difficulty each day
OR
2) You can carve out moments to embrace difficulty, and, consequently, enjoy comfort even more
This last weekend, I got to catch up with some old friends at a birthday party, and it was a great time. Great food, drinks, music, and a campfire outdoors—the environment was top-notch.
But there was something unique about this party.
There was a cold plunge with ice, and bunch of us decided to partake in the voluntary discomfort for subsequent payoff.
This was funny to me because most people probably would never consider this your typical part of a social gathering.
Nevertheless, there are far less occasions than you’d think when it would be a bad idea to do a cold plunge.
There’s abundant research supporting the health benefits from cold therapy; better stress-tolerance, stronger immune system, improved sleep, reduced inflammation…the list goes on. The dopamine release immediately following voluntary cold exposure has even been shown to last longer than that of recreational drugs. While it’s a fun, quick, and cheap way to boost your mood, one of my favorites among the myriad of benefits is probably that it helps reduce the hesitation to do hard or irritable things.
I NEVER want to get in a cold plunge or cold shower. My mind races through excuses in an attempt to find one that will keep me from getting in. Regardless, I always feel incredible as soon as it's over.
4 minutes in 40 degrees (Fahrenheit) or colder, and it's over.
The Christmas season always feels even cozier after experiencing hard things or a little bit of discomfort from something silly like a cold plunge or cold shower. Subsequently, for me, my daily commitments appear more manageable when I’ve already exercised some mental resilience.
It’s true though, the cold makes cowards of us all.
Don’t agree? Turn your shower as cold as it can get within 5 minutes of waking up and hop in. You’ll hear those random new excuses to not do it go flying through your mind faster than you thought possible. But if you still do it, despite those excuses, you will have conquered that moment, and later moments throughout the day will feel easier.
If you’re trying to learn a new language or anything else that takes daily commitment, it helps to expose yourself to the elements and do some things you initially don’t want to do.
Merry Christmas! Make it cozy.
Until next week.
—Thomas