Stop, Drop and Blog

I am considering turning off my television until after Black Friday. Possibly until after Christmas. And the post-Christmas sales. Or, at the very least, DVR-ing anything I want to watch and fast-forwarding through the obnoxious, sing-songy, gimme-gimme, spend more, do less, it’s-all-about-what-you-buy commerciality of it all.

I’m also considering avoiding my inbox as I received no less than 20 Black Friday pitches from PR companies today. That probably wouldn’t bode well for work, so I’ll just delete. Or reply with something The-Bloggess-like. But less funny. And more angry. Which makes me angrier: I don’t want to be angry during the holiday season.

Let’s not misunderstand something: I like buying presents for people — especially my family, my children, my husband. I love watching their faces light up when they open a present that touches something in their soul, that lets them know I was thinking of them — deeply and purposefully — when I made the purchase. Or, in the case of some (or, a lot!) of my presents this year, took the time to make said present. I love the act of giving.

What I don’t love is this unending, ever-growing case of the gimmes combined with the unstated point in every commercial that if you don’t participate in these sales, that if you don’t spend the money, that if you don’t wake up at ungodly hours, you’re doing your gift recipients a grievous error. That you’re less than. That you’re doing it wrong.

Newsflash, big box companies: I’m not doing it wrong.

I put a lot of thought into the presents I give every year. Most often they are not included in the flyers that you send in the newspaper, the emails that you flood my inbox with and the catalogs that are filling up our landfills. It’s not that I don’t buy my children toys: I do. This year, our oldest son is getting a pretty pricey toy. Not because I want to keep up with the Jonses, but because I told him that when he learned to read, he could get one. And so he learned how to read. And that’s why it is special. Not because I got the best price — because I won’t as I refuse to wait in those crowds and miss out on a day off with my family. Not because he’ll be “equal” with his friends. Simply because he’s an awesome kid who deserves an awesome gift.

I am just horrified with the overt commercialism that is smacking us all in the face this season. The best presents are not big screen televisions or cheap pajamas or Blu-Rays that will be outdated the next time the industry decides to change what format we watch our movies on. I’m not saying that those things aren’t fun and great; I scored a great TV last year (from the comfort of my couch, mind you). I love that TV, despite the fact that it keeps sending hideous, awful, annoying, aggravating commercials into my living room.

But it’s not what Christmas was about last year for me. It was about teaching my children the importance of giving to others. It was about spending extra time with my family members. It was about baking and laughing and singing songs and going to performances and decorating and hot chocolate. It was about the joy in their eyes when the magic of Christmas woke them up. It was about experiences more than gifts, it was about love more than things.

And we’ll be doing the same this year. We’ll unwrap “stuff,” but when the memories of those things fade, we’ll still have each other.