Tomorrow is “Giving Tuesday,” a holiday designed to balance out the self-absorbed madness of Black Friday and Cyber Monday. On this day, business, charities, communities, and families enter into the spirit of giving. EVERYONE can participate. If not with our wallets, then with our excess food in our pantries or the second Buy-one/Get-One-Free item. With that like-new clothing we loved when we bought it but know we’ll never wear. With those toys our kids opened Christmases ago but sit in their boxes, un-played with. With blankets and rain ponchos for the homeless who are about to be caught in what promises to be a harsh winter. Or simply with the gift of our time: to help at a shelter or soup kitchen; to visit a lonely elder in a nursing home; to comfort a grieving family; to be with a troubled child. I hope Giving Tuesday expands to Giving Everyday. Besides, the spirit of this day turns the madness into a loving anticipation of a Christmas season packed with all the meaning it’s supposed to have.
Tag Archive for gift
Stealing the Season
‘Tis the season…for stealing your identity and financial information. There’s a large number of malicious apps out there anxious to trap you by filling your In-Box with offers of fantastic prices and discounts. Beware! Here are a few tips:
- Watch out for texts that contain spelling or grammatical errors. Legit retailers pay good money to make sure their promotional materials don’t have such mistakes.
- Avoid third-party app stores. Stick to real, established ones, like Apple and Google.
- Look at the URL. Be sure it starts with HTTPS. If not, forget it.
- If the prices are too fantastic to be true–and items are not being sold from the trunk of a car–it’s a scam.
- Shop only from retailers you’re familiar with and ones you trust.
In short, make sure you don’t bestow the gift of your money and private information on scammer.
A New Christmas Tradition
Start a new Christmas tradition. Each family member writes down a gift, placing the paper in a special stocking or wrapped box with a slot on top. The gift should be for someone outside your family—a neighbor, another family, acquaintance, person you’ve heard about. And the gift must be of time, not money or goods, a gift of self, not charity. Examples: monthly visits to a nursing home for a year; driving a person to medical appointments until he’s well; helping an adult or child learn English or to read or write; changing the attitude of a prejudiced friend. (I can give you more ideas–let me know.)
Christmas morning, as a family, open and read these “gifts” and agree to help each other follow through on them. This is the kind of gift-giving that is in the true Christmas spirit, ones that make a real difference to the people who receive our gifts as well as to our own hearts.
Have a very merry Christmas!
Expand Your Hobby this Season
We’re getting into the season of love, when we feel the urge to give and share and make the lives of others brighter. We buy gifts for loved ones and give money to charities. We may even break our long-standing rule and give a buck to the homeless person standing outside the grocery store.
But we can also personalize and humanize our help. Someone who knits or sews for relaxation can make items for a specific charity (new, handmade items are a treat). When you cook your specialty, double up and take the extra to someone who is sick or living alone. Bake your favorite cookies, muffins, or scones to take to a shelter. Go to the movies often? Brighten the life of someone on limited income by treating him sometime, explaining that you’ll enjoy it more in his company. Like gardening? Help an elderly or disabled person plant a small, manageable garden at her home, then stop by often to admire its progress. If you unwind by doing auto repairs, volunteer to help get that laid-off neighbor’s car into running order.
The key is this: figure out what you do as a hobby, then share. You’ll find it more enjoyable—and more fulfilling—than ever before.
Why a White Elephant?
After Christmas, it’s thought of as great fun to have a “White Elephant Party,” where you exchange gifts you received but have no earthly use for–except to take up space and gather dust. In case you’ve wondered, here’s the origin of the term “White Elephant” – something useless that nobody wants and is a burden to own.
Actually, in Thailand, white elephants were once thought of as sacred. At the same time, the Siamese king would foist one onto someone who fell out of his favor in order to punish him. That is, someone who made the king mad would find himself burdened with a white elephant, which was very expensive to care for and maintain, often driving the new owner into poverty. The “gift,” then looked like generosity on the king’s part but was really a sneaky way to get even.
How Big the Gift?
Today’s Thursday Thought sheds some light on the act of giving and the size of the gift.
An Act of Love on Valentine’s Day
This isn’t just Valentine’s Day; it’s also National Donor Day. Are you registered as an organ donor? If you have moral reservations, most religions recognize the practice as an act of generous love toward a co-member of our human family. Too old or sick? Nope. Older donors are accepted, even people with health issues. Costs too much? No again. There isn’t any cost to donors or their families.
If you aren’t registered yet, Valentine’s Day is the perfect day to do it.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
No Thank Yous?
I know I’m old fashioned, but I still send an occasional snail-mail card or note. I’m chagrined to realize that this is “simply is not done” any longer. Oh, a card sometimes, but not a note.
I learned that lesson this year after having attended the showers and weddings of several people in their late 20s and early 30s. I was present when one new bride and groom opened their gifts. I tried to get them to stick the cards in with the gifts, and I offered to keep a list. Both offers were ignored. I assumed that they already had a system or someone else in the room keeping track. I was wrong.
What I learned is that with this age group (that is FINALLY getting married, often after years of cohabitation and a kid or two) doesn’t concern themselves with thank-you notes. They’re appreciative, but they aren’t responders.
Maybe writing thank-you notes is a quaint custom. But I miss it.
The Pleasure of Loaning Money
I love it when I receive another payment from a loan I made. My latest is from a family man in Kanese, Uganda. My big loan was $25. It’s to send his kids to school. He works hard at his job, plus farming on the side to add to his income. He dreams of a better future for his kids, and he knows that education, although costly, is their path to that future.
He’s one of a bunch of people I give micro loans to through KIVA. Some are people on the other side of the earth, some are in the good US of A. All are people that KIVA has vetted as having a true need and a determination to repay the loan. My $25 is added to similar loans to get to the needed amount. Over the months, I receive updates on how the person is doing. I get payments, too, until the loan is totally paid off. At that point, I can get my $25 back, or I can invest it in someone else. I’m sure you can guess which choice I always make.
I’ve even given a loan in someone else’s name, as a gift. (Christmas is coming….)
Find out more about this life-changing program by going to http://www.kiva.org.
This is Janakason, at a rare time when he isn’t working.
An Idea for Valentine’s Day
Last-minute gift idea: Give your Valentine a locally-grown plant to enjoy for a long time rather than a bouquet of short-lasting flowers which traveled great distances to get here. (80% of the flowers sold in the U.S. come from Colombia and Ecuador.) It’s a loving gift that will last months or years to come, reminding that special someone of your love.