Look, I love family photos during the holidays. Plus, I actually read those annual holiday letters, all of which start with “What a busy year it’s been!” Seeing photos of my friends and their families and even enjoying a few sunny beach scenes when it’s cold and dark outside is a highlight of December.
But I enjoy the photos more when they’re inside the card, not the card itself. Because more and more, even devout Christians have been replacing Jesus, Mary and Joseph with themselves.
Can I plead my case that we saved a lot more money by making our own cards and having them printed as pictures, rather than buying a Christmas card and including a family photo?
“Doesn’t it strike you as weird to set aside the Holy Family in favor of your family? Does a photo of Cabo San Lucas trump the story told by the original San Lucas? Is Christmas really about you?â€
Ouch! It makes me really rethink how I’m celebrating Christmas this year — as I stuff a few more Christmas photos into envelopes.
The Simple Dollar shares several pointers on how to make Christmas much more meaningful this year.
First off they note, that the really meaningful Christmas gifts don’t come from MegaMart.
My wife and I take pleasure in creating homemade Christmas gifts, as do many of our friends. But even these are secondary to the time we spend “playing Santaâ€, driving around making holiday deliveries to the people we know. As we chat on porches or sit in living rooms, sipping hot cocoa and fawning over children, it’s the bonds of friendship that are important — not the gifts.
The post then shares several pointers from the book, Unplugging the Christmas Machine.
Robinson and Staeheli (the book’s authors) argue that children don’t really want clothes and toys and games. The four things they actually want are:
A relaxed and loving time with the family. Children need relaxed attention. During the holidays, normal family routines are temporarily set aside for parties, shopping, and special events. It’s important to slow down and spend quality time with your kids.
Realistic expectations about gifts. Kids enjoy looking forward to gifts and then having their expectations met. The key is to manage their expectations. By educating them about what “Santa†can afford, and is willing to give, it’s possible to prevent disappointment on Christmas morning.
An evenly-paced holiday season. The modern Christmas season starts months before December 25th, when the first store displays go up. Things end with a bang on Christmas day. The authors suggest beginning the season late in the year instead. Get out the Christmas music on December 15th. Pick out a tree on the following weekend. Schedule some low-key family events during Christmas week. Stretch the season to New Years Day.
Reliable family traditions. When I talk to my friends about what Christmas was like when we were Children, it’s not the gifts that we remember. We recall the things we did as a family. I remember sleeping next to the tree every Christmas eve, but never being able to catch Santa in the act. I remember seeing the cousins. I remember decorating the trailer house. Your kids will remember the traditions, not the gifts.
That last point is so important: it’s the traditions that make this season special, not the gifts.
I shared with our small group Saturday night that the idea of giving and receiving “material gifts” has become a lot more trivial to me in recent years. Maybe I’m ungrateful and expect everyone else to feel the same way — I dunno. I just feel like a gift card or a last minute gift says nothing about how you might really feel about that person.
Spending an hour over coffee at Starbucks, or a bowl of popcorn seems to say so much more.
What about you? What are you thinking, doing differently this year?
I serve the king of an upside down kingdom. A kingdom where the meek shall inherit the earth, where those who morn are comforted, where the last are first, where the oppressed shall be freed. Where rather than appearing in a palace to lead his kingdom with a sword, my king came and appeared in a lowly manager — surrounded by animals.
May we conspire to be an active part of this kingdom this advent season.
Truly He taught us to love one another,
His law is love and His gospel is peace.
Chains he shall break, for the slave is our brother.
And in his name all oppression shall cease.
Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,
With all our hearts we praise His holy name.
Christ is the Lord! Then ever, ever praise we,
His power and glory ever more proclaim!
His power and glory ever more proclaim!
