This Christmas was definitely one to remember. Aside from 2009 not being a very pleasurable year for me, this was also one of the most budget conscious Christmases I've had in years. Not like I'm rolling in dough but I usually don't have to resort to robbing Peter to pay Paul in order to purchase gifts for my loved ones. With that being said, I went into this Christmas season with a bit of unease about not being able to spend money lavishly on my family. I felt this way until I spoke with my friend LaKeita, who is a newlywed and a new mom.
We were discussing our lack of funds this year and she shared her perspective on giving gifts to her husband this holiday. She explained that due to not being able to shower him with tons of gifts, it made her focus more on the quality of the gifts she gave to him. She really worked hard to find useful gifts that would mean a lot to him. As she was saying this, I realized that I did the same thing. Instead of purchasing meaningless items of clothing, I used my creativity to come up with gifts that I thought would strike a chord with my family members. I had pictures enlarged and bought things for my nieces that I enjoyed when I was a child. To my surprise when my nieces opened their gifts, they paid no attention to the clothing I purchased for them but rather went to the kitchen table and began to use the arts and crafts materials I purchased instead.
As I was talking to my friend, I also realized that even though I have had a difficult year personally, I have tried my best to still be a good friend, daughter, sister, coworker etc. that I can be to the people I know. I think I managed to do that in some way this year and that makes me feel good.
It sounds cliche but Christmas really isn't about gifts. It is about love and celebrating the birth of Christ. While I go into 2010, I will remember what I have learned and I will practice this daily. Love is what matters most and I will try my best to continue to be the loving person that I know I can be.
We were discussing our lack of funds this year and she shared her perspective on giving gifts to her husband this holiday. She explained that due to not being able to shower him with tons of gifts, it made her focus more on the quality of the gifts she gave to him. She really worked hard to find useful gifts that would mean a lot to him. As she was saying this, I realized that I did the same thing. Instead of purchasing meaningless items of clothing, I used my creativity to come up with gifts that I thought would strike a chord with my family members. I had pictures enlarged and bought things for my nieces that I enjoyed when I was a child. To my surprise when my nieces opened their gifts, they paid no attention to the clothing I purchased for them but rather went to the kitchen table and began to use the arts and crafts materials I purchased instead.
As I was talking to my friend, I also realized that even though I have had a difficult year personally, I have tried my best to still be a good friend, daughter, sister, coworker etc. that I can be to the people I know. I think I managed to do that in some way this year and that makes me feel good.
It sounds cliche but Christmas really isn't about gifts. It is about love and celebrating the birth of Christ. While I go into 2010, I will remember what I have learned and I will practice this daily. Love is what matters most and I will try my best to continue to be the loving person that I know I can be.
