FOUR FENG SHUI PRE-HOLIDAY TIPS
Greetings Everyone!
The arrival of November signals the beginning of the holiday season for most of us. (I know, it feels like the year of the Earth Ox just started.)
If you’ve been successful this year, like the ox, you’ve probably been patiently working and focused on planting seeds that will bring you the most plentiful harvest in the future.
November offers us a break and the opportunity to lighten up a bit. It’s a good time to play more and plan fun.
It’s also an excellent time to plan for the holidays ahead. The preparations can be light and playful. It’s a matter of attitude and, if you get started now, you will be assured that your home is filled with vibrant energy—or, as we call it in Feng Shui, CH’I!
Here are four Feng Shui tips to get you ready for guests and holiday fun:
1. Take a tour of your home—both inside and outside. Pretend you have never been there and look through the eyes of a visitor. Whatever they see first will influence their overall impression of your home. Make a list of anything that bothers you and, if possible, handle anything that comes up before the holidays.
What will usually stand out is:
- Any brightly colored object that is out of place.
- Clutter
- Deferred Maintenance
- The overall impression and feeling of the first room as you enter
2. Spruce up your entryway. The entrance is the main mouth of ch’i. Both your porch and the area inside your door should be clean, vibrant, and energetic. Remember that you are inviting opportunity, abundance, and other good things into your home. You want them to feel welcome along with your guests.
Your main entrance should be easy to find. If people are confused about which way to enter your home, opportunity will also find it difficult to find you.
To ensure that your friends can easily find you:
- Cut away any overgrown shrubbery that blocks your front door.
- Make sure that your house numbers are easy to read and visible from the street.
- If your entrance is difficult to locate, mark the path with lights, planters, or add a colorful flag or windsock near the door itself.
If the hardware on your door is worn or shabby, this would be good time to replace it.
Replace any everyday items like welcome mats, wreaths, or flags that are worn or that you don’t like—even if you plan to put out holiday themed items later in the season.
If guests usually come into your home through entrances other than the front door, pay extra attention to these entries, too.
3. Lighten up! Replace burned-out light bulbs. Add or increase lighting to any dark corners of your home—especially if they are located in a part of the bagua that represents a problem area in your life. Adding light can bring clarity to those life situations and break up stagnant energy.
4. Delete clutter! If there are things that should be put away, start to do it now.
Whenever you walk by an item that is out of place, don’t ignore it. Instead, pick it up and, if it will take less than a minute to put away, do so immediately. If it will take longer, at least carry it towards the area where it belongs and put it away as soon as possible. You will be amazed at the difference this will make.
If an area is cluttered, resist the impulse to cram things into an unused closet, the basement, or another out of the way place.
Put similar items together in a container or file. Sort and label before you store anything. 99 times out of 100, you won’t remember where things are stored, so listing the contents will save you time and confusion later.
May November bring you joy, laughter, and blessings!
Suzanne