Are You Broke Yet?
Ahh...Christmas time. The time to buy just the right gift for your loved ones. The time where you can spend hours on end eating and drinking egg nog(with Rum) and not feel guilty. A time to just let yourself show your true feelings toward your fellow man and woman.
And then...it's all over. Reality kicks in. You realize that you have become religious and have grown a "Buddha". (At least if you haven't decided to follow him, you are starting to look like him) The Visa/Master Card/American Express bills come in and then you spend the rest of the year paying them off so you can do it all over again next year. Doesn't that sound like fun? So the question is, why do you do it? Does the amount of money spent on someone really tell him or her how much you care or love him or her? What about the rest of the 364 days of the year? Won’t they still care and/or love you if you don’t get him or her the most expensive gift? If not, doesn't that sound pretty disrespectful? Pretty hard to take when you are only doing this for some “tradition”. About the only people who are very happy that you are happy are the storeowners where you are buying the gifts…
Try something different next year. Don't buy gifts, or if you do make a pact with others that their gift won't cost over $20. I know that sounds like a "cap" but I bet you'll find out you still have a great time, the people you see will still care and/or love you, and you'll still look like "Buddha". Tell the kids they will get more for their birthdays instead (but really do give them more). I bet you'll be better off financially and the friends and family will still love you. So what do you think about that idea?
4 comments:
I'm with you - I think the way the 'holiday season' runs these days is definitely part of the debt/wage slavery cycle. Basically, if all of us are so deep in mortgages and credit card debit that we desperately need our jobs, we have very little freedom to be able to negotiate wages and conditions - we have to take what we're given. It's carefully set up to keep us in our places.
The advertising industry is well designed to make us disatisfied with the life we have, and to whisper in our ear that, if we could just buy this, we'd be happy. Or, much more insidiously at this time of year, if we just bought this for our loved ones, they'd be happy - and love us more.
And this orgy of commercialism is meant to be in celebration of Jesus. Funny that - I seem to recall some story about him driving out the merchants with a whip...
Well put. I see you have touched on one of my future posts. I think this all started with some book when Santa Clause was introduced. Amazing that we do things just because!! I, in my older age have started to look at things a bit differently. I have to thank my supervisor, and dare I say friend, with helping me to see things differently. I feel I am in that debt/wage cycle, though probably not as bad as I think. So it is nice that we don't have to buy gifts at our house and instead we spend on other things that "we" really want.
Hey Lorne, Your writing style has really improved. Your flow is excellent and you are finding it easier to articulate your thoughts - cool . Looks like you got some of your dads writing genes!!hehehe
As for your post - I love it and I agree. In fact I think that most people agree with it , but they feel so strapped to those "traditions" and the unspoken expectations of others that it would be almost impossible to get away from it with sleep and peace.
Remember that we live in Canada the home of the People who wont take a stand on anything that might cause to much of a ripple, the country that is so concerned about everyones "rights" that we are now heading to a time of starting to lose them, and to the land where taking a stand on anything either makes you "Difficult", "extreme" or "fanatical".
That being said, I hope that you and your great family are taking advantage of this opportunity of the season to give to the needy, spread the love of God and enjoy some of that rum with eggnog.
keep on writing Brother!!!
love ken
Thanks Ken. Even my dad said my writing is getting better, and since he has had things published and I haven't, I have some catching up to do.
Your comments about rights could be used in another post one day. I just have to think about it some more.
Take care and thanks for the well wishes and hope to partake in a few "pops" over the next couple of weeks. Hope you and your family have a great Christmas and prosperous New Year.
Love,
Lorne and family
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