’Twas a week before Christmas and all about town, every shopper was busy spending their last hard earned dime. Have you finished your Christmas shopping? There are those that finished all their Christmas shopping on Black Friday. With bellies full of turkey and trimmings after Thanksgiving, they competitively shopped til they dropped taking advantage of those deeply discounted sales. There’s another group that waits until the absolute last minute to tackle their list and last minute gifts; running around on a mission, often in frigid temperatures, for serious sales on Christmas Eve.
True purists still do all their shopping in person, braving traffic on the roads, in the parking lots, store aisles and the dreaded long lines checking out at the register. And as the day goes on, they are laden with more and more bags of goodies, feeling anything but a jolly old Saint Nick. True, shopping has gotten easier as the Internet’s offerings have become almost endless. Plus, if you’re not feeling creative or can’t figure out what to gift that person who has everything, for the ultimate convenience there’s the gift card. Even more convenient is shopping online. But you still have to remember to take this time to figure out who you have to buy for, what you have to buy, and how you have to get it to them.
But wait a minute. That’s a lot of have to’s on your list. Wouldn’t it be nicer if Christmas shopping was more about what you wanted to get someone? This is a holiday that has become dreaded by many and filled with resentments when you didn’t get what you wanted, how you wanted it and whom you wanted it from. Where is that Christmas Spirit?
Let’s end all of this insanity and refocus on the real meaning of Christmas. Wait, not that real meaning. I mean the commercialized Americana version - gift giving.