We've been talking here at our home about the upcoming Christmas visit of our kids and grandkids. The older we get, the less we are interested in caving in to the commercialism of Christmas as it's celebrated in north America.
I still remember the Christmas, when my brother and I were young adults, when we got a gift that was clearly more appropriate for kids than for us. That's when we realized that we really ought to release the older folk in our lives from giving us gifts. Not long after that we said to our parents, "Let's go out as a family to Barnes & Noble, each of us buy a book to read over the break, and call it Christmas." That's when Christmas started feeling pleasant and sane again.
And yet there are pressures, such as the impending arrival of family in a few weeks. The other grandparents will likely shower the grandkids with toys and gifts, in some cases at quite an expense. If the grandkids arrive here and we give only the gifts of time, game-playing, sledding, story-reading, cooking and eating together, goofing off and so on, will that make us "the not-fun grandparents?" Unfortunately, our grandkids live a thousand miles or so away from us, so we don't know them well enough to predict whether our preferred kind of celebration would be a hit or a disappointment.
In a past year I came across the "Advent Conspiracy." As I wrote this post I again viewed a promo video on the topic. Here it is:
Yet again, I'm convicted. It's time to "take back Christmas," whether it makes us popular or not. Cyber Monday, you will not have me. So there.
Every Christmas I feel more and more strongly that gift-giving as we know it should STOP. It is utterly ridiculous to spend hours throughout the year (LITERALLY) searching for "the perfect gift" for multiple family members who may or may not be as excited about the gift as you expected. So much worry is wasted on whether or not a particular amount of money spent will offend Aunt so-and-so or whether a gift card seems thoughtless and impersonal.
ReplyDeleteEvery year I re-analyze my feelings and encourage more and more people to not buy me gifts. Yes, there are things I'd like, but the fact remains that Christmas is not about my wants. It's about my one core need and that is to have Christ in my life. That is the whole purpose of this holiday, whether or not it is celebrated at the time of His actual birth.
I will be blogging about this soon...I actually posted a blog a few weeks back about "What to Give Someone Who Has Everything." It runs along a similar vein.
Anyway, thanks for posting this. I agree 100% and wish you all the best in helping your grandchildren understand the importance of family, quality time and service. To me, THAT should be the spirit of the season.
May I give you a suggestion for your dilemma? To make an official announcement that "You may be used to a certain kind of Christmas, but at my house THIS is our kind of Christmas (and explain what kind of things make Christmas for you). The most important thing is that I like to spend time with you, not what we give each other. Because spending time with you, is what you will remember later."
ReplyDeleteThe dilemma disappears when you realize that people coming to your house,need to follow your "rules" (or whatever you want to call it).