Dec 25 2008
As I write this…
About one week ago, I’ve been sipping a cold beer in my warm apartment, stuffing envelopes and catching up on old and new friends through the glories of the internets on my own personal laptop computer. There is a beautiful woman who agreed to marry me sleeping soundly in the room to my left. The room to my right is holding our wonder-magnet of a daughter - tipping the scales of cuteness, even for a toddler. We are all well-fed. I, for one, am a little too well-fed.
As stated earlier, by the time you read this, I expect that we’ll be hundreds of miles away. We flee from nothing; we are not evacuated nor exiled. We do not go looking for green pastures or food or refuge. We go willingly, because we want to meet our family and be together in another heated apartment (or three, to be more precise). We are driving down there in a car that is not our own, because we pay somebody for the right to borrow their car.
And our Christmas will have few gifts. Not because, obviously, we cannot afford to buy and give gifts. We do have money, and more importantly, we have lines of credit. Part of the reason we are dramatically cutting back on gift-giving this year is both pragmatic and purposeful: we don’t think it wise to go further into debt to buy things that won’t last and really don’t matter. And I’m good with that. But also, there’s another aspect that I’m just thinking about: We all have what we need. I mean, I could use new shoes. If someone got me a new pair of jeans or some boots (or boots for the baby or the mama) that would be appreciated. But, really, we are all capable of providing, we all have plenty. And then some.
Do I feel guilty about that? Honestly…
Sometimes.
But I realize that we have resources in order to share and to share freely - with and for all, not just with those I agree with or like. And, I believe, as much as we do share we are doing good, we are actively spreading love. I may not directly affect children lost or trapped in Rhodesia or North Korea or the Congo or San Francisco or Brazil or Lower Wacker Drive or Darfur. But hopefully my family will influence people to make all aspects of the world a better place.
Merry Christmas - to those that celebrate it.
