I have a confession: I haven't really been in the Christmas spirit this year. It's shocking, I know. Most of my friends know I'm a huge Christmas fan, but this year I feel like I've just been going through the motions. I could blame it on (until very recently) unseasonably warm weather, or the prospect of facing that one gift receipent who inevitably looks at their present with disdain, but truthfully it all comes down to cold, hard cash.
Last year, with two full-time incomes, we had a pretty lavish (for us, anyway) Christmas. Not this year. I've done the bare minimum of Christmas shopping due to a severe lack of funds. My favorite part of Christmas has always been finding that perfect gift for each person on my list, but I feel like I can't do enough for the people I love this Christmas.
Now, obviously this kind of thinking misses the true meaning of Christmas. Christmas is, at the very least, about the love of your friends and family and coming together to spend the holiday with them. The gifts are incidental - or they're supposed to be. Yet, working in retail, especially at a high-end store, I'm reminded of how little we're giving this year.
In spite of this though, as I sit here looking at the Christmas tree, I am suddenly and pleasantly surprised by the number of gifts under it. Even though I wasn't able to purchase everything I wanted to give this year, each item was selected carefully for the person for whom it was intended and I'm sure that everyone (with the exception of that one difficult to please recipient) will enjoy their gifts.
Better still, I have many gifts of my own - wonderful husband, a loving family, awesome friends, and two adorable kitties. Instead of moping about money (or lack thereof), I'll be following Bing Crosby's advice during this last week before Christmas.
