Merry Christmas

A Very Merry Christmas, the Everyday Bushcraft Way

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Whether today is loud and joyful, quiet and reflective, or a bit of a mix of everything—my hope is that you feel safe, seen, and surrounded (in person or in spirit) by people who genuinely care about you.

Christmas has its own kind of wilderness. It’s not a forest or a ridgeline—but it can still be full of weather: expectations, old memories, family dynamics, travel plans, tight budgets, busy calendars, and the pressure to “make it perfect.” That’s why I love the Everyday Bushcraft philosophy: the skills we practice out bush are the same skills that help us navigate life—especially seasons like this.

Here’s a Christmas reflection through the five skills of Everyday Bushcraft.

1) Self-Aid: Looking after the inside of you

In the outdoors, self-aid isn’t only bandages and first-aid kits. It starts earlier than that: emotional safety, self-awareness, and knowing what you need before you hit empty.

Christmas is wonderful… and it can also be heavy. For some, it’s grief. For others, it’s loneliness. For many, it’s stress dressed up as celebration.

Self-Aid at Christmas looks like:

• Taking a breather before you snap.

• Saying “no” without guilt when you’ve reached your limit.

• Checking in on the quiet person in the corner (including when that’s you).

• Making space for gratitude and honesty in the same day.

If Christmas is hard this year, you’re not failing. You’re human. Self-aid is the skill of being kind enough to yourself to keep going.

2) Knots: Connection, strength, and responsibility

Knots are about joining, securing, and holding under strain. Christmas is the season of connection—family, mates, neighbours, community. It’s also the season where relationships can feel… tangled.

Knots at Christmas looks like:

• Repairing a relationship one small conversation at a time.

• Setting boundaries that hold (like a good bowline—secure, reliable, not crushing).

• Being the person who ties the group together with calm words and steady presence.

• Letting go of the “perfect” knot and focusing on a knot that’s safe and functional.

Some ties in our lives need tightening. Some need gentle loosening. Wisdom is knowing which is which.

3) Shelter: Protection, belonging, and the people who cover us

Shelter is more than a tarp. It’s the place—and the people—who protect us from life’s storms.

Christmas reminds us that not everyone has an easy shelter. Some people have a house full of people and still feel alone. Some have nowhere to go. Some feel unsafe in the places they “should” feel at home.

Shelter at Christmas looks like:

• Creating a table where people feel welcome, not judged.

• Inviting someone who might otherwise spend the day alone.

• Keeping the mood warm and steady when others are a bit weathered.

• Being a safe person—not just a festive person.

Your home doesn’t have to be perfect to be shelter. It just needs kindness, respect, and room for people to breathe.

4) Fire: Inspiration, purpose, and the warmth we share

Fire is life. It’s warmth, light, and energy. It’s also inspiration and passion—the part of you that says, “I’m still here. I still care. I still have something to give.”

Christmas fire isn’t only in decorations or candles. It’s in moments:

• A laugh you didn’t think you had in you.

• A thoughtful gift that says, “I really see you.”

• A story told for the hundredth time that somehow still matters.

• The courage to show up when you’d rather withdraw.

Fire at Christmas reminds us: warmth spreads. If you’ve got a little flame, you can help someone else relight theirs.

5) Water: Grace, flow, and filtering what matters

Water keeps us going. It adapts. It flows around obstacles. And when we purify water, we’re choosing what we let in.

Christmas can bring friction—plans change, kids melt down, relatives push buttons, weather messes with travel. Water teaches us to stay moving, not stuck.

Water at Christmas looks like:

• Letting small things go instead of turning them into battles.

• Choosing peace over being right.

• Filtering out bitterness and holding on to what’s good.

• Adapting when the day doesn’t match the picture in your head.

Some of the most resilient people I know aren’t the rigid ones—they’re the ones who flow.

A Christmas challenge, bushcraft style

If you want one simple way to live the Everyday Bushcraft way today, try this:

• Self-Aid: Check your own energy before you push on.

• Knots: Strengthen one relationship with a kind word.

• Shelter: Make one person feel safe and included.

• Fire: Spark hope—encourage someone.

• Water: Let one thing go that doesn’t matter.

That’s a great Christmas day. That’s a good life.

Merry Christmas

From my family to yours: Merry Christmas.

Wherever you are today—on the road, at home, at work, with a big mob or on your own—may you find warmth, belonging, peace, and a little bit of wonder.

And if you’re in a season where Christmas hurts, I’m still wishing you something real: comfort, support, and the steady knowledge that you don’t have to carry it alone.