The holiday season is upon us. This is a time when families get together to celebrate traditions passed down from
generation to generation. It’s also a time of decorating, which helps to enhance your home and your life.

Holiday decorating enhances your space
Holiday decorations usually include the colors green, red and bright lighting. Whether you decorate with a Menorah or Christmas Tree, the objects you bring in to your home for the holidays will represent the energy of the Fire Element.
Menorahs add fire to any room. Christmas Trees represent growth; and the conical shape of the tree and all the lights encircling it also represent the fire element. All decorations of bright colors, lights, garlands, and traditional objects make the home’s energy flow easily and create a joyful environment for family gatherings.
As you decorate, think about using the Feng Shui Bagua to help guide you in placement. The most auspicious of the Fire Element areas of your home is the Fame Area.
One of the Feng Shui principles is that everything is connected, so if you ask yourself, “Can adding the fire of holiday decorations to my home really affect my fame and reputation?” – The answer is ABSOLUTELY.

In the Feng Shui Bagua (Ba-gua) Map, represented as a grid of nine sectors, the Fame and Reputation area is located in the center back of your home/office/business. The Bagua comes from the Chinese philosophy, “The I Ching,” and literally means “eight trigrams,” with the center for grounding. In the “I Ching” the Fame and Reputation area of your home or business is called “Clinging Fire” because one of the attributes of Fire is that it clings to whatever it is burning. Whether good or bad, our reputation is very difficult to shake off. It clings tight, either warming or burning us into the hearts and minds of others. Therefore cultivating a good reputation helps friendly relations to spring up all around us, creating the best chances for a happy and secure future. How wonderful that the holiday decorations you add to your home can in fact set you up for a positive New Year.
So, how can the energy in your home help you bolster your positive reputation?
Enhancements in this area are particularly helpful if: You would like more recognition at home or at work, you want to establish a good reputation in your community, or you want to be well known for something you do.
The element for this area is Fire, and the color is anything in the red spectrum. Red is one of the most powerful colors in the Chinese culture. It represents fame, fortune, joy, festivity, longevity and protection from bad luck. Representations of this element can be used inside and outside of your home or business.

Enhancements for the Fame and Reputation area inside your home or business:
* Christmas trees, Menorahs which represent cone, triangular or pyramid shapes, and pleasant lighting, including sunlight, candles, electrical lights and oil lamps
* Personal images and symbols of fame; diplomas, awards, trophies and acknowledgements
* Things made from animals, such as leather, feathers, wool and/or bone
* Art and figures of animals, people, fire, sunshine and favorite celebrities; vision boards that represent your dreams for the future
* Items in the red spectrum
* Quotes, affirmations and sayings pertaining to Fame and Reputation and aspirations for the New Year

Enhancements for the Fame and Reputation area outside your home or business:
* Items that represent the sun, fire, stars
* Holiday lights, up lighting around trees, twinkle lights
* Fire pits and BBQ grills
* Items, flowers, plants in the red color spectrum

Fire Elements:
The Fire element is represented by the hearth and when in balance enhances excitement, enthusiasm, leadership. In the Feng Shui Cycle of the elements the Wood Element feeds Fire, therefore adding representations of Wood, such as Christmas trees would feed the fire of your dreams, enhancing your opportunities and achievements.
Sometimes your holiday decorations don’t fit exactly in the Fame sector of your home (center back), or the Fame area of your living room or den. If that’s the case any of the other Fire sectors also work nicely; Wealth and Prosperity or Love and Marriage. Christmas trees also work well in Knowledge, Family and Health, but because of all the colors, lights, garland and ornaments can represent all of the elements and act as five element displays wherever placed. This is a win – win! Menorahs representing fire enhance any of the three fire areas, but like the Christmas tree, depending on the colors and what it is made of they can also hold all of the elements. You really can’t go wrong with holiday decorations; no matter where you place them you are activating the Ch’i (life force energy) and positive energy will come your way.

Important Feng Shui Tip
Clear the clutter from the room before you begin decorating, and keep it clutter free. This will help your calm, holiday energy flow and prevent your holiday communications from being “messy.”
I wish you a holiday filled with family, friends, harmony, happiness, excitement and enthusiasm._ May your fame and reputation thrive!

Feng Shui at Work
Our Christmas tree fits nicely in our Fame area and lights up our entire house. We feel so much renewed energy when it’s up that we begin decorating right after Thanksgiving and keep decorations up through New Year’s Day. I wish we could keep them up all year long.
Friends of mine have a beautiful Menorah which they place on a mantle above their fireplace in their Helpful People area, which is governed by the Metal element. They decorate the mantle with metallic cloth and ornaments, incorporating all the elements creating a powerful 5 element display: (candles, the color red, and the fireplace represent the fire element, metal Menorah and metallic cloth represent the metal element, holly berries and poinsettias represent the wood element, crystal ornaments represent the water element, and yellow, or rectangular decorations represent the earth element.) Their home is always warm and inviting for the holidays, and the fame and reputation in their careers are thriving.

Feng Shui on a Shoestring:
Feng Shui enhancements do not have to cost a great deal. Using your old holiday decorations brings back memories and good energy. When I was traveling to see my daughter and she didn’t have a tree, I packed a small artificial tree with lights in my suitcase and plugged it in for us wherever we were. It shifted the energy immediately. This is like traveling Feng Shui positive energy.
Affirmations:
Remember that in Feng Shui, intent plays a significant role in enhancing any area of your home or business. That’s why all enhancements need to be made with intentionality; written or stated affirmations are very important. It is also important for them to be expressed as if they are already happening. Examples or affirmations for the Fame and Reputation area: “In the New Year I am honored and respected in every way by the people I work with, and for the work I do”, “I enjoy an abundance of support and enthusiasm for my accomplishments”, “My reputation for honesty and compassion grows daily.”
For questions or home consultations email at mtmccull@aol.com and put “Feng Shui” on the subject line, or visit my website at www.fengshuibymaria.com, (where you can read past columns), or Facebook “Feng Shui by Maria”, where I post pictures as examples to enhancements.

* I NOW have a BLOG – Just go to the website and click on “Blog”: You can view many pictures and, I will respond to your questions quickly.

Classes:
I will be teaching another series of three classes through Acalanes Adult Ed:
Thursdays Jan. 12 through 26 from 1 to 3 p.m.
You can register online at acalanes.k12.ca.us/adulted (Participants will receive $40 off a home consultation.)
Until then…Blessings!

Maria McCullough, a Benicia resident, is the owner / founder of Feng Shui by Maria (www.fengshuibymaria.com) and is a speaker and educator with over 20 years of experience. She specializes in residential, landscape and business consultations. She is a graduate of the Western School of Feng Shui and has personally trained with
Terah Kathryn Collins, founder of the Western School of Feng Shui, specializing in Essential Feng Shui® and author of numerous books including “The Western Guide to Feng Shui.”

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