Holiday Gifting on a Budget: Gifts That Keep on Giving
By Dr Nancy O’Reilly, PsyD
If you are like me, the holiday season can create a roller coaster of feelings. Two completely opposite emotions instantly come to my mind: joy and dread.
I feel joy because I love the holidays! I love to see family and friends that we often do not make time to see the rest of the year. During the holidays, everyone creates more opportunities for socializing. We stop and take time to connect and share our love unlike any other time of the year.
But I also feel dread because of the pressure of “gifting.” What do they want? Will they like what I pick out? Will they understand if I can’t spend as much this year? This holiday season, we are all thinking about paying bills, keeping our jobs, and maybe even helping other family members who are in trouble financially. We’re wondering how long we can afford to pay for health care and if our savings will still be there when we need it.
Do you know anyone who has a lot of cash lying around for gifts? I don’t! So don’t fall into the trap of using an already-smoking credit card to buy expensive presents for everyone on your list.
Here are some ideas for making your gifts this season more meaningful to you –– and to your “giftees.” When you give of yourself, it’s a “gift that keeps on giving.” This year’s weird economy sets up a great scenario for us to re-think our gifts this holiday season.
Give your time. Time is definitely the most precious gift we can give to our loved ones (and to ourselves, for that matter). Consider this holiday keeping your costs down to a minimum with giving the gift of your time. Here are some simple ways to do just that:
- Write a note. Email has left most of us with a drawer full of unused stationery and cards, so for the price of a 44-cent stamp, you can make someone’s day brighter. Letters or cards can truly touch the person you love and care for, especially if you take the time to share some personal details of your life. We all know what a joy it is in these times to receive a handwritten note. I almost fall out of my chair when a real card or letter comes in the mail. Write these simple words: “I care, I love, and I wish only good things for you.” or “I’m thinking of you fondly this holiday season.” When you take the time to make someone feel special with honest, heart-felt wishes, you’re guaranteed to end up on someone’s “great people list.”
- Call someone who is under the weather. Better yet, set up a telephone or email tree and enlist several other people to reach out as well. Studies show the more friends women have, the better they recover from even serious illnesses like cancer, so know that by reaching out you are giving the most wonderful form of healthcare.
- Offer to do errands or any type of job: fix a sink, do the dishes, care for a child, pick up groceries, offer to drive or deliver for them, prepare and share a meal.
- Visit someone who is housebound. Phone calls are great, but there’s nothing like face time while sharing a hot cup of tea or cocoa. People who are isolated can become especially despondent during the holidays, so the gift of your company is priceless.
- Expand your circle. Do you know someone who would otherwise be alone on a special holiday? Extend an invitation that includes an offer of transportation. Older people particularly may be reluctant, or unable, to drive after dark.
Give your talents. Gifts of love can be more meaningful than much more expensive gifts, so use your talents in ways that will benefit others.
- Whip up a batch of holiday cookies for a busy family. You’ll give twice if you make them with other family members and start a wonderful holiday tradition and create memories for children. Include a photo of the kids at work baking for an extra special treat.
- Share a family recipe along with a sample jar of the perfect sauce, salsa, or relish. A bit of pretty paper and ribbon can dress up the simplest jar.
- Are you crafty? You probably have boxes and bins of leftover materials, so pull them out and take inventory. Beads, fabric, pinecones, greenery, dried flowers, yarn, paint, tin cans, paper, glitter – it’s all raw material for creating holiday arts and crafts. If your mind is empty of ideas, search the Internet for holiday crafts – you won’t have time to read all the ideas.
- Tree decorations are a wonderful and welcome addition to any home. If you include your name and the year on the back, they’ll be reminded of your love each time they decorate and take down the tree.
- Record a CD with your family singing seasonal songs. Make it a DVD and you can add video from your phone. Search online for “Free CD cover template” and you can create a customized cover with family photos.
Give to yourself. Take time for you, to focus on your personal priorities. You’re not doing anyone a favor if you become overstressed and freaked-out by self-imposed pressures this time of year.
- Watch a movie alone or together with your family. Libraries have excellent collections of DVDs for all ages, and popcorn and cider take the chill off the grayest day.
- Read alone or to others. Spending a few quiet minutes each day can be like pressing the reset button on a scrambled computer.
- Relax. It’s important to do something every day just for yourself, no matter how small: spend a few minutes in a hot bath, sing along to a favorite CD, meditate or pray, stretch.
- Remember to exercise, alone or with others. It’s free!
- Eat lightly and well. Focusing on nutrition is a great way to come out of the other side of the holidays without regrets.
It is really easy to trim your gift budget this year, and keep from breaking the bank. If you don’t have it, don’t spend it! There are so many ways to have a really wonderful holiday during which everyone will win. You will feel good, they will feel special, and you will discover the best way to truly share the meaning of holidays.
Let this be a time for all of us to really connect. Let’s understand that we are all in this together. We can learn so very much and rise above it. Have a Happy Holiday, and I send you and your loved ones all the blessings of the season.