If you know me, you know that Christmas isn’t my favorite holiday. Don’t get me wrong I love the spirit of the holiday, but the stress, the rush, and the never-ending push of consumerism depresses me.
We’ve all seen it and complained about it… Stores start putting up decorations before Halloween, radio stations switch over to Christmas carols in early November, our kids start their “I want” lists in May.
Somewhere along the line the holiday became less about peace, love, and joy, and more about profit margins, credit card bills, and materialism. When you think about it, that’s really sad… Will your kids think you love them more because you got them the newest game system? Will your husband be more devoted to you because you got him the latest iPhone?
These material things are fleeting… They give joy for a day or a week, but they’re not meant to last. The things that last are those that cannot be purchased, and in our rush to feed the profit margins of companies across the globe we’re destroying the true gifts of the season.
This year, on the day after Thanksgiving, a Wal-Mart employee was killed in the mad rush of people running to buy their Barbie dolls, and Transformers. A family will have an empty spot at the dinner table on Christmas because to a crowd of holiday shoppers, their gift lists were more important than a human life.
It makes me want to cry.
No matter if you celebrate Christmas, Chanukah, Yule, or Kwanza, the true meaning of the season is to be with your loved ones, to spread joy and be filled with peace. Not by the giving of things, but by giving yourself.
Hugs,
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