It’s not that I’m opposed to giving gifts … I just don’t like the excess.  Every Christmas it makes me feel a little sick.

I didn’t go shopping yesterday.  We just moved across the country and have no money to spare, regardless of how great the sales are.  But in a way, I’m glad.  Yesterday a Long Island man died at the hands of a Wal-Mart Black Friday mob.  Two people died in a shooting at a Palm Desert Toys R Us.

These events are so disturbing.  They both morbidly combine deadly violence with consumerism and the holidays.  On a day when many people go out shopping for Christmas, an act that should be benevolent and generous, people are dying in the stores.  You can argue that the Toys R Us shooting may not have been retail related, but it nevertheless took place in the retail arena.

Even before this happened, I was feeling sick of the whole Christmas retail blitz.  I wanted to find a way to disentangle myself from the frenzy.  I don’t need much.  And what I do need I want to get from a responsible retailer.  Unfortunately, the people in my life who are giving me gifts don’t share my interest in finding organic and socially responsible products.  I guess I dodged the bullet this year by asking that our Christmas present be our flight home.  But rest assured there will be plenty of gifts to go around.

It’s not that I’m opposed to giving gifts.  I actually really enjoy figuring out what each person would like, and finding the right gift for them.  I just don’t like the excess.  Every Christmas it makes me feel a little sick.  But how do you convey this to the people in your life without sounding ungrateful?  How do you try and live out the changes you’ve made in your life, without appearing to look down on those around you?

So, on that note…

Happy Holidays, everyone!