The true reason for the season

I am sure you have all heard the saying, it is better to give then to receive. And as I think back to getting caught sneaking a peek at my Christmas presents a few years in a row (what can I say, I have always been curious and at times impatient!)  I can see why this is such an important concept. 

As a child I did not always realize the joy was in the giving and receiving, not just the gift. But I do think I have enjoyed the action of giving for quite some time. It always made me feel good when a friend liked the gift I gave them for their birthday or when I could help someone smile with a small item they liked to use. I was the coordinator of Secret Santa, Cupids, and Fluffer Butts with a group of friends my senior year in high school. And while some of my friends were busy trying to figure out who had their name I found myself listening to my person to see what they would enjoy to find in their locker most. 

That is the part of giving I truly enjoy the most. Asking questions and listening to conversations to make note of what might help them smile as they tear off the wrapping paper. I love to personalize gifts and make them mean something. That is where the joy is for me - knowing I got it right for that 
person. 

I also love the journey of finding that special gift, using my searching skills to find out where I can find the best deal or item for each person, and even customizing and creating items that are one of a kind from inside my mind. My husband would tell you Pinterest is my biggest time waster, but I love seeing ideas people have put together and making it my own. I borrow from the best and turn it into what I can do, so my items never turn out exactly like they are online, but my own version of what I see. My favorite gift from last year was the canvas collages I made with pictures of letters on signs from places that were important to those people to spell out their names. I had more fun finding the places to take the pictures of the letters then anything else. And this idea came to me as I saw a photo collage of doors important in my hometown. It was especially fun to hear them talk about where the letters were from as they guessed or matched it up with the laminated card I put inside that gave the information. 

Each year I am trying to pass this on to my girls and show them we can work together to make presents or put together a few small items with a theme for their teachers, friends, and cousins that are even more special then something expensive from the store.

 I am even playing around with an idea in my head to start a new tradition this year to help pass our waiting time Christmas morning that involves making something for our siblings or finding a way to give back to our community. 

I have always tried to work with my girls to give back at the holiday time when we clean out our toy box and toys to donate to others who might not have all the nice things we have. We discuss how we are fortunate to have our family and nice things to share with each other, but that doesn't happen for everyone for a lot of different reasons so we can help make that happen for someone with something we loved to play with for awhile, but is ready for a new happy home. I need to work on this all year as a way to keep the kindness going. 

The girls have also really enjoyed shopping the last two years to put a present in the box for a toy drive started in our local school to remember a special little girl taken too soon in a car accident. They look forward to picking something out and telling me how it will be played with. They also like to see the pictures of the girls little sister with all the toys before the family donates them. I like to hear them chatter about 'wow, look at all those toys kids will now have to play with' and 'isn't she lucky to give all those toys away.' And to read the posts about how this toy drive is helping the family remember their daughter and her giving spirit makes my heart melt even more. 

I have been reading many stories of Random Acts of a Kindness and Paying it Forward as part of stories on Random Act of Kindness web page and the 26 Acts of Kindness Facebook page that started after the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary. It is heartwarming to hear the good in our country as sometimes we tend to focus on the bad. Another friend also posted his girls with the toys they bought with money they saved in their piggy banks to buy toys to put in the Toys for Tots bin at Toys R Us. What an an amazing tradition to start with their family! 

When I was a middle school librarian my announcement team worked ever year to spread the word on live morning announcements via the TV to gather items to share at the holiday time. We did movies for soldiers overseas, books for the book mobiles in Africa, canned goods to forgive library fines, and sold candy-grams to raise money to donate. We also did a penny war each April to celebrate reading month and donated the money to places like Camp Courageous, the Heifer Project and local students after car accidents involving them or their parents. The kids looked forward to it each year and really got into the idea of giving back. And the ladies at the bank we extra kind when they saw me coming with my buckets of change to run through their machine.

The 'tail' end - I hope the 'spirit' of the season finds you merry and bright during this holiday time. What do you do to give back or pay it forward during the holidays or any time of the year? 

There is always, always something to be thankful for

What happened to Thanksgiving? I saw this comic on Facebook and had to immediately share it with others!

In my house Christmas decorating does not start until December. The only thing I might do a little early is pick up some presents (to save a lecture from my husband about the amount of money I spend in December) so I can spread out the spending! 

I saw Christmas items up in stores before Halloween and Black Friday has creeped into Thursday at many stores. Retail is taking over time with our families to enjoy talking, laughing, unbuttoning pants because we ate too much, and random naps from the turkey. But I cannot just blame the stores, they are reacting to the supply and demand system our society is built on. It would not pay for them to be open on Thanksgiving if no one was there, but the problem is - there are people there to get the deal. We are helping to create the monster. Why is saving a few dollars more important to us then being with the ones we love? If everyone stayed home there would be no reason for stores to be open.

 But instead I see stories on the news about women camping out at Best Buy 20+ days before Black Friday (how do you afford to buy anything if you are not working for 20+ days?)  and the woman who K-Mart is going to fire because she is refusing to work on Thanksgiving to be with her family. (I know there are many jobs that work holidays - including my husband the dairy farmer who works 365 days a year as the cows don't know it is time for turkey - and I am sure those people would like to be home with family too, so why are we creating more reasons to break into family time.)  When will it end? When will we stay at home to be with family instead of pretend we are saving money. (You know a sale is only marking it down so they don't make AS much, but don't kid yourself they are still making a profit) 

We have forgotten the real reason the Pilgrims and Indians sat down together to enjoy a homegrown meal - they were thankful to have the food and friendship. 

The choice is yours - help big business or stay home and love the ones you are with. What if everyone took the money and time they were going to waste in line and spent it to help a needy family or serve Thanksgiving dinner at a homeless shelter. Just imagine the impact of that. 

The 'tail' end - What are you thankful for this fall season?