Many of us are lonely, especially during the holidays. Christmas is “the most wonderful time of the year,” but for quite a few, there are reasons why it might not feel like it. Perhaps it is a new loneliness because a loved one is no longer with us this year or our children have all grown and moved away. Or maybe it is a long-standing loneliness – you’re single and never had any children to begin with, or you are now, because of age or illness, at home alone. Maybe even the stress of a large gathering or loud party just seems too much for you and you choose to be physically alone.

Whether we choose to be alone or not, none of us wants to feel lonely, but research tells us that somewhere between 30-50% of us do feel lonely at Christmas. That’s a lot of people, so ironically, you are not alone. So what are some things we can do to combat this holiday (or even long-term) loneliness?

1.

Think ahead about when you may be alone for an extended time so you can take a little control and see where to schedule errands or shopping, trying not to have more than a couple days when you are not around other people.

2.

Reach out to others. Chances are, you know someone who is as lonely as you. Greet a neighbor, call an old friend, even write a letter.

Surprisingly, Gen Z’ers (18–24 year-olds) and single adults reported the most loneliness – even more than elderly people. So whatever age you are, don’t assume younger people have all kinds of friends. Invite one over for a simple dinner and you may both enjoy yourselves more than you thought.

3.

If you are able, go volunteer somewhere. Many groups look for help around the holidays for their big outreaches – soup kitchens, food banks, caroling at care facilities, etc. You may find others who are alone at these events and find camaraderie there as well.

4.

If none of these are available options for you, you still don’t need to be alone on Christmas. The whole point of the holiday is celebrating the fact that Jesus, the Son of God, came from heaven to become one of us, live a perfect life, then die and come back from the dead so that He can live with us and in us, now and for eternity. Emmanuel, God with us. If you are a believer, you have a friend with you at all times. If you are not yet a believer, God loves you, wants to save you, and live with you forever.

If you are one of the fortunate ones who will not be alone on Christmas, look around at church, at work, your apartment building, or wherever you may be. Do you see someone who might need someplace to go? Is there at least an event you can share with them and then a cup of coffee afterward? Christmas may or may not be the most wonderful time of the year, but it is a celebration of one of the most wonderful events of all time. Share it with others.

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1. Dance Party
Do you love people who love to get down? Plan a Christmas Dance Party, complete with fun music, wacky outfits, and crazy decorations. Make sure you get some screenshots, because these are memories you’re going to want to pass on to the next generation!

2. Book Club
Send a book to each household you want to participate in your virtual book club and set the dates. This can work for people of all ages. You can pick a classic like Dr. Seuss’ How The Grinch Stole Christmas! to read with the kids in your life, or you can make it a season-long thing and read a novel together with your siblings or cousins. If your family members don’t enjoy reading, you could pick a devotional or a joke book to work through together instead.

3. Board Game Night
It’s likely been awhile since you’ve had a game night, so get out your dusty Candy Land or (if you all aren’t the table-flipping type) Monopoly, and set up a video call. For a really special touch, send a box of their favorite snacks ahead of time.

4. Zoom Party Scavenger Hunt
This works best if you have a lot of people on your video call. Start off with a piece of paper and write down all the items in the scavenger hunt on the left side of the paper, and each person’s name along the top edge of the paper for scoring. Think about items that most people will be able to find somewhere in their home- a slipper, a spatula, car keys, a sports team t-shirt…the options are limitless! The rules are:

• All players must be touching their device before each round begins. 
• The host calls out the first item on the list and starts the timer.
• The players must rush to find the item in their house and bring it to the starting position before the timer runs out.
• Once the countdown ends, all players must come back to the starting position, whether they found the item or not.
• The host then writes down the points won by each player, next to the item. 
• The scoring works like this: 
  • The first player to reach their screen with the correct item wins 3 points.
  • The second player to arrive with the correct item wins 2 points.
  • All players who find the item within the time period but did not arrive first or second, receive 1 point.
  • The rest of the players who did not find the item, or found the item after the time was up receive 0 points.

5. If You’re Not Text Savvy
If you’re not familiar with Zoom or video calls, and the idea of learning how to do it is just too much for you right now, there are still fun things you can do! Think about writing a scavenger hunt, sending it to your loved ones in the mail, and asking them to take pictures and mail them back to you. Or, have phone call dates and have specific things set up to ask about so the conversation doesn’t lag. If you have a smartphone, look at getting Game Pigeon and play classic games with the young people in your life. There’s Four In a Row (it’s like Connect 4), Checkers, Chess, Word Hunt, and many many others!

Hopefully these ideas have inspired you to think of creative ways to connect with your loved ones this year. Maybe you’ll even start a yearly tradition! Do you have any ideas of ways to connect from a distance? Tell us about them, and you might just be giving someone else a ray of hope during this unusual season we’re in! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

For more thought-provoking topics, tune in to Hope 100.7. 
God bless you. Stay hopeful!

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