Winding down

I've been absent from blogland lately, only just catching-up with blogs in my favourites list today! You see, we've had a sudden change of venue for Christmas this year. One of Dave's relatives who normally hosts Christmas for the family, decided to spend it in another part of the state. Which is okay, but then Dave stood up to the plate and offered our house for the next venue.

Which isn't a bad thing either. It means we don't have to travel an hour away in Christmas traffic, as we normally do. And we've been meaning to host a Christmas day, "one year" too. But I guess we weren't expecting to make the decision 2 weeks away from Christmas, LOL. So as you can imagine, it's been a little chaotic around here.

I probably won't be around much, until after New Years. We're still going through with our no spend year in 2010. In fact, the commercialisation of Christmas has made us all the more determined to change the way we do things. The stuff we have decided we don't need any more could fill a few wheelie bins. As wasteful as that sounds, it's better to have realised this now, than waste another year (or ten) being blissfully unaware. We will re-home what we can, but as I place stuff into the bin, I remember the waste - our waste - we still own it, even as we disown it.

This time of year though, I can't help but think about what's important. I mean, what's REALLY important. I grew up with a single parent who was forced to live green, purely for survival's sake. She used to make my dolls for Christmas - I loved them because they came from her hands. No one else had a doll like me. Even though it meant I got teased at school for being different, those kids had no idea the difference that went into making my gift, to the plastic ones they received.

I guess I learned to loathe plastic toys early, LOL. Yet how many am I giving away to the secondhand shop now, which our daughter has accumulated? I don't buy them for her, relatives do. Even my husband has no qualms picking up a plastic toy, as long as it's on sale.

Grrrr!!!

But he's made vast improvements on how much he used to buy. And he's even agreed to the no spend year. Twelve months ago, he'd probably look at me strange - raising an eyebrow, wondering if I was having a laugh at his expense, LOL. Bless him! We're making progress...

Anyway, I just wanted to remember all those single parents doing their best for Christmas. All those fathers and mothers who may have to work on Christmas too. The elderly who may not have a family to spend Christmas with - or those who have lost loved ones before their time. I choose to remember these people because they have more to offer Christmas, than any present under the tree. They know what sacrifice is all about.

Bless you and yours.