Hyper-amplified by the media and the Internet, the holiday season has roared in with all the intensity of a hurricane or blizzard. Everyone suddenly has to spend a lot of money and, by the way, there is a limited amount of time to spend it in.
Before the anxiety monitor needle creeps into the red zone, it’s time to step back and make sure the feelings and values at the center of celebrating the holidays do not get lost in the shuffle. Concern for others and the exercise of basic politeness are the best and easiest gifts to give during the holidays and, guess what? They’re free.
Imagine if every holiday consumer dedicated five dollars, maybe 10, to spend anonymously on someone who could use a little cheering up or an unanticipated gift during December. Sure, the recipient might be befuddled, even suspicious about receiving an anonymous gift but the gesture involved in the giving is ultimately what counts during the holidays, right?
What if every trip to the mall or the grocery store included the option of giving up that coveted parking space to another person waiting to park? A simple act of charity and generosity outweighs the time lost in hunting for another space or walking an extra 100 yards to get to a store.
Sending out holiday greeting cards almost sounds like a gesture as antiquated as dressing up to fly somewhere or using a telephone book. But there are people who are lonely during the holidays or for a variety of reasons feel left out of the shopping, decorating and celebration whirlwind. It doesn’t take much time or money to address a card to someone and slap a stamp on an envelope. That simple gesture might be a way to restore a relationship or encourage the recipient to repeat the charitable gesture.
The holidays kick off with a flurry of days dedicated to shopping for deals, shopping in small businesses, shopping online, giving to charities. Maybe it’s time to dedicate a holiday day of action where people spend an hour, maybe an afternoon or even a whole day helping someone they have never met in some way, shape or form.
The “way, shape or form” could include driving someone to an appointment; taking them grocery shopping; reading to someone for an hour or just listening to them talk for 10 minutes, maybe longer.
Spending time with others or providing a listening ear costs nothing and doesn’t involve much effort. But the popular perspective on time is that it is a dwindling commodity that must be “saved” or “crunched” lest it be “wasted.” Listening is almost a lost art in a modern world where social media increasingly dictates the length and detail involved in daily communication.
But popular culture aside, giving still remains the greatest gift because it rewards the giver with a feeling of wellbeing almost always eclipsing the gratitude felt by the recipient.
