We were sitting around the fire pit in the neighbor's yard last weekend when the conversation turned to Christmas readiness. This is a familiar conversation. Some are, invariably, completely ready - shopping done, cards sent, tree decorated (I am never ready for Christmas on Thanksgiving weekend). Some will say, "Oh, God, no!" vehemently, and always with a sense of panic tucked in. And one will say: "A few years ago, I stopped giving Christmas presents. And I asked everyone to stop giving them to me, too. We all have everything we need and no one needs to waste any more money on stuff nobody wants."
Sometimes I chime in at this point, as I did this weekend, to say that a few years ago I said, and I meant it, that all I wanted for Christmas was time. Time together, time with friends, time to sit and talk and listen.
I meant it then, and I mean it now. But, not without a little footnote attached.
I agree that Christmas gift-giving has gone completely mad in almost every direction. The stores and sales opening at 5 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day so that the race for bargains and this year's hottest items can begin before the dishes are done. I heard on the news today that Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving) was a record breaking success for the car industry! What? It's true. Chrysler sales were up by more than 16% over last year, and it was one of the top five sales days of their year. I can't imagine buying a car on the day after Thanksgiving, but apparently, there is more of that going on than ever before.
Some of us (myself at least occasionally included) strive to be Martha Stewart, with polished silver and matching place settings. And some of us ache with a nostalgia for Christmases past...long past, perhaps a Christmas that never existed.
But still, gift giving is a ritual gesture, a reminder of the many gifts of our lives, and more importantly, a reminder of the one gift the holiday is meant to recall: the birth of a Savior. It seems that wrapping up a present - of any kind - is a reminder of swaddling clothes; the tree lights sparkle like the stars over Bethlehem; and the action of picking the gift from under the tree, reaching across the room to hand it to a friend or family member, watching them unwrap, open, delight, is a reminder of the ways that we, too, can make love manifest in a broken world. We shouldn't, I suppose, rack up credit card debt to do it, or anguish over the perfect gift that we cannot find or afford - but we should look closely at the loved ones we have and say they are worth some effort of remembrance, some moment of delight.
I remember when Mother gave me a copy of Anne Morrow Lindbergh's Gift from the Sea. I will never forget it or the goldfish that Dad bought for us as children in that poorest of years. I will not forget the silly pink silk top my mom bought for me when I was deeply in need of a little "glam" in my mommy years. I hope that I have been at lease as precise in a few of my choices...even though I know that I have often missed the mark. I will keep on giving gifts - of course to the grandchildren, even though I don't think it is "all about the children." I will do my best to give a little gift to this circle of life...and remember...and give thanks.
So this blog, dear one, is my little gift to you - who has given me more than you can ever know.
All love
Amanda
P.S. Am I ready for the holiday? Oh God, no.
P.P.S. Aren't free stock photos wonderful? Thank you Microsoft Office online for the Christmas tree image!
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