A Small Gift, charcoal and conte sketch on paper

On the seventh day of Christmas sketches…

Running errands are not my bag…If I could order everything and have it delivered, I would. I recognize that in today’s world, this is quite possible, but sometimes you have to go to an actual store and pick things out. Like yesterday.

Christmas. Shopping.

Not my idea of fun. To make it worse, I am a penny pincher and don’t like spending money. To make it worse again, I’m trying to purposefully “find” the “true meaning” of Christmas, which makes it confusing to go to Wal-Mart and load up my buggy with toys. I was at a mental crossroads (please hear some sarcasm).

I’ve posted a lot about my son lately…he is a comical little fellow who drops tons of story-telling opportunities right in my lap, just by being his quirky little self. But I have two other wonderful children. My working-answer to my Christmas shopping query comes as I think of them.

As we shopped, my husband and I tried not to just grab random toys to have presents to give (though I dare say at the end of said shopping trip we may or may not have been chunking in “stocking stuffers” as we walked passed displays, without an ounce of thought besides “get me out of heeeeeere!!!!!”).

We tried to think of what makes our 7-year-old tick, what makes our 5-year-old unique, what makes our 8-month-old happy, and choose gifts to encourage their talents, their joys and their creativity.

Same for my parents; same for my sister; same for anyone else we plan to “gift” this year.

Christmas is not “about” presents, but they definitely seem to be #2 on the list. Gifts should be a thoughtful gesture… And I’m not buying the “show your love by buying a Lexus,” over-commercialized Christmas. I’m aiming for a reasonable, loving gesture…something that says “I thought about you; I know you and thought you would like this gift from me.”

Gifts are definitely a part of Christmas, and a part of being human. We want to do something for others. We can downsize our gift-giving. We can give to those in need. But, I really would love to have more peace about Christmas shopping.

When it comes to Christmas “gifting,” my best understanding at the end of the day is this:

Make them meaningful. Make them count.

7 Swans-a-Swimming