I got a great Christmas present today. A gift of color, light and beauty. And it didn't cost a dime. But it is a priceless gift because it is from the heart of an old and dear friend who seemed to know instinctively what I would love to get for Christmas.
Call me Scrooge, but the ongoing collapse of the consumer shop-till-you-drop economy on maxed out credit cards got me to thinking about the value of the compulsive present buying that starts the day after Thanksgiving and goes on relentlessly until Christmas Eve. It seems to me that the more frenetic the shopping for ever more presents the less value is placed on any one of them in a kind of inverse ratio. I have seen people almost robot like open one present after another, hardly look at it, and then tear into the next one in the same robotic manner. Their self worth seemingly in proportion to the quantity and not the quality of the gifts.
Scrooge was a miser not so much of money as of the human spirit. When he bought a huge goose for the Cratchet family, he was not so much opening his purse, but his heart. The message of Dickens story is that a true gift benefits both the giver and the receiver.
As my old friend shared this gift of light and beauty with me, so I pass it on to you dear friends.
Click on the title to see this beautiful gift. If it doesn't raise your spirits, then maybe you need a visit by the three spirits of Christmas past, present and future.
Oh, and here is one more tree and, of course, me.
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR.
4 comments:
Thanks Joe for this nice and thoughtful post. Merry Christmas !
Radek
Although I don't seem to be able to see the link that shows me what inspired you to write this lovely piece, at this time, would love to share a gift that a friend brought to my Chanukah/Book Club get together, last night. She found poems about Friendship…wrote them on cards, and handed them to each of us. Now..that is a gift that will always be remembered. Happy Holidays to all!
-Ronnie
I can't see the link either but agree with the thoughts in the post. Christmas is not the enjoyable holiday that it was in past years. Rather than concentrating on the precious time spent with loved ones (which is where the focus should be because, as we well know, they could be gone from our lives at any moment), we spend way too much time shopping for gifts that people don't need, spending money that we can't afford to spend and it's all over in a few hours. The stress outweighs the joy for me. Here's wishing you a stress-free holiday season. Much love to you and your family this Christmas. - Michelle
That's is weird; it works on my computers--maybe it's because my blog is google based and I use google gmail. Google is as google does, I guess. Anyhow, I sent it as a broadcast email to people on my contact list. Hope you can see it that way. It's really worth a look.
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