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My book, The Hundred Dollar Holiday, came yesterday, thanks to Heather, as I won her blog giveaway. I find I’m interested in any book she recommends. And this was an engaging easy read. Took me almost one sitting.
Here’s my take on simplifying Christmas, and a little of my back ground.
I grew up, from a child’s point of view, experiencing the most magical Christmases, full of treats, presents and family; all three overflowing. I loved being surrounded by my big family, and with so many presents you couldn’t see the floor.
But now I’m an adult and have had many, many years of celebrating Christmas without children of my own. I’m convinced children are the magic of Christmas. Not to take anything away from the Reason for The Season, but children fuel the traditions; making cookies, singing songs, seeing the lights, gift giving. Excitement and anticipation all rolled together. I think we do these things because kids are involved. And a phrase from this book leaped out to me. Why has Christmas lost it’s magic for some? “Here’s the bottom line: we have so much stuff that a pile of presents is no longer exciting, no longer novel.” Kids, because they haven’t had that much time acquiring stuff, find anything given to them to own, as sheer excitement. They’re getting the taste of materialism and it’s delicious. I remember loving the flavor.
I also found this quote interesting from an 1894 New York editorialist, he complained that “the modern expansion of the custom of giving Christmas presents has done more than anything else to rob Christmas of its traditional joyousness… Most people nowadays are so fagged out, physically and mentally, by the time Christmas Day arrives that they are in no condition to enjoy it. As soon as the Thanksgiving turkey is eaten, the great question of buying Christmas presents begins to take the terrifying shape it has come to assume in recent years…. The season of Christmas needs to be dematerialized.” Telling how that was written over 100 years ago.
I’m not making any judgments, no real soap boxing. Just reading I found interesting to think about. I’ll still buy Jack Christmas presents. Although we are minimal about it. He’ll have three from us this year. Perry and I, for the most part, don’t buy gifts for each other. For the very reason that we don’t need to buy each other stuff just for the sake of buying something. We get what we need and want throughout the year. So somehow a Christmas present isn’t that novel. That’s just us. What I do receive from Perry every Christmas, and is most dear to me, is a letter. A simple, personal letter written by my sweetheart, full of his feelings for me and our life together. A gift that has nothing to do with Black or Red Fridays, and means more to me than any gift he could have thought to buy. I like the idea of giving without spending. I think the point in giving, is to give gifts that matter, whether it’s your time, something said, something needed, or especially, something to eat. 
And I really liked how the book ended,
“The point is to emerge from Christmas relaxed, contented, happy to have kept this season. To emerge closer to your family than you were when Advent began. To emerge with some real sense that Christ has come into your world.”
Thanks Heather, for getting me to reevaluate what my Christmas celebration should be.
by Little Starling Photography
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