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  • From: "Felicity Wright" <flickwright@ozemail.com.au>
  • To: <permaculture@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [permaculture] Clutter-free & Debt-free Christmas
  • Date: Thu, 16 Dec 2004 12:02:53 +1030

Further to the thread about a permaculture Xmas. I was sent out to subscribers by the USA FlyLady website (First Love Yourself) - and thought it was a great idea and worth sharing. It was sent in by someone in the group. Could be replicated with any group of people where there are expectations of present giving. I have a large family so it particularly struck a chord.
flick wright

> Dear FlyLady,
>
> I am not dreading Christmas this year because my family and I have
> made some drastic changes that have made Christmas a joy instead of
> drudgery. In case anyone is interested, here's what we do.
>
> Both my husband and I have large, extended families. Both like to
> get together at Christmas. As the families have grown, the burden
> of getting gifts has gotten heavier and heavier. We don't make a
> lot of money, so getting something nice for everyone became very
> hard. Even exchanging names wasn't easy, because it meant extra-nice
> gifts that each person in our immediate family had to purchase. My
> elderly mother was the reason we changed all that. Buying gifts with
> social security money, she grew nostalgic one Christmas about the
> old-fashioned Christmas's she'd had as a child which focused more on
> being together and where only small, practical gifts were exchanged.
> My sisters and I finally decided we'd had enough. We put an
> absolute $5.00 limit on all gifts and opened it up to garage sale
> finds, white elephant joke presents, things found in our own attics
> and garages and drawers, homemade gifts...basically whatever. We
> included some presents appropriate for the children. Everyone had to
> bring three gifts apiece. Men for men. Women for women. Kids for
> kids. When it was time to unwrap presents, we put them in a big pile
> on the floor and took turns picking one out. None were labeled. Men
> accidently got perfume or costume jewelry. Women got work gloves
> and screwdrivers. Kids got grandma's jelly jars. Adults got kid's
> toys. It didn't matter. Because each time it was your turn, you
> could either "steal" a present from anyone in the room, or you could
> select a new unwrapped gift.
>
> We have never had so much fun. We laughed so hard when my macho
> brother-in-law who never washes dishes unwrapped a lovely set of
> dish towels. Or when grandma opened up the mounted singing fish.
> The jar of black walnut nutmeats my sister had laboriously shelled
> was the hit of the night, and passed hands feverously, until the
> last gift was opened and the game ended. I ended up with a bottle of
> hot sauce ominously labeled "rectum ripper."
>
> The next year, we felt free to invite guests to our family's
> Christmas. All they had to do was bring three gifts and they were
> in. An elderly woman from our church who has no children, now comes
> every year and basks in the fun. There is no awkwardness about
> gifts for her because all the gifts are a little odd, anyway. Last
> year we invited a man one of my brother-in-law's had befriended,
> who'd been in prison for over thirty years. He was able to be part
> of the laughter and joy, had gifts to give and to open, and said
> later that it had been the best night of his life.
>
> This has gone so well, we now do the same thing with my husband's
> extended family. No pressure. No maxed out credit cards.

I plan to make a wonderful meal,
> thoroughly enjoy my friends and family, and be able to actually feel
> the joy of Christmas instead of fatigue, worry, clutter and debt
>
> Ohio flylady





  • [permaculture] Clutter-free & Debt-free Christmas, Felicity Wright, 12/15/2004

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