I hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I had one of the best I’ve had in a long while. Though life seems especially full of stressors for so many of us these days, I was able to do more than give lip service to celebrating what really matters to me, and all of the other stuff vanished for a couple of days. Though the food tasted warm, homey and indulgent, there was nothing fancy about it. In fact, we super simplified a couple of dishes in ways I wouldn’t have been willing to a few years ago. I took great joy in pulling together my eclectic decorations and dishes, bargains and treasures collected over the years to set up for the feast . I kept annual traditions like my Thanksgiving Day walk and my favorite Thanksgiving movie. Perhaps the most wonderful thing was the way that everyone who joined me for dinner shared the work and expense. I did a lot, but I enjoyed it and never felt overwhelmed. As a result, I was able to appreciate every part of the holiday and the people I spent it with. It was simply lovely.
Avoiding the shopping frenzy was another personal triumph. However, I know lots of folks do like to get started early with their gift purchases. I wanted to share a few ideas I’ve come across on how to keep gift giving well balanced and help make the holidays worth celebrating. Here are a few thoughts to consider:
- A friend shared the following guidelines with me a few years ago: Something you want, something you need, something to wear, something to read. This approach doesn’t limit what you can spend, but it does focus gift giving and balances the practical and the indulgent. Though the possibilities within the categories are abundant, you must choose just one of each making the wish list and the gift giving more thoughtful.
- My large family is spread out across the country and we only occasionally all get to spend the holidays together. So, we draw names and have a price limit. I know lots of people do this, but I like how it gets us all in touch as we look for ideas of what to buy and make plans to get it to the recipient. What I like even more is that when many of us do get together, we have a $10 limit on gifts. Contrary to what you might expect, I’ve gotten some of the best gifts when we were spending much less money. It forces you to be more creative and it stretches out the gift opening festivities. I love the challenge of finding great gifts and the pleasure of unwrapping little surprises.
- One year my brother-in-law bought a water buffalo from Heifer International in our family’s name. The buffalo is given to a struggling family in a developing nation where it goes a long way to help them become self-sufficient and work their way out of poverty. I also know a teacher who requests contributions be made to this organization in lieu of gifts that might be given to her.
Though changing holiday expectations and habits may take a year or two, creating a balance that is right for you may be just what you need to make the holidays more meaningful and enjoyable. The same idea won’t be a good fit for everyone, so I ask you, creative and thoughtful reader, what gift giving innovations have you heard of or tried that bring balance to your holiday gift giving?
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