OT: Free Christmas...

[Guest guest]

Reposted from C.M.

 

Free Christmas.................

 

A few years ago I noticed that the holidays were becoming more and

more stressful in our home. My children were young and received a new

deluge of gifts each year, adding to the mounds of toys we already

had. Putting toys away became more time-consuming than actually

playing with the toys themselves, and stole time away from a peaceful

environment for my children (and me, too!)

 

Christmas has always been my favorite holiday, and I struggled to find

ways to convey this joy to my children. The focus seemed to be more

and more on the " getting " rather than the " giving " , and even though we

were charitable in our hearts, I thought there had to be a better way

to express the joy of giving in a tangible way.

 

That was when the idea for Free Christmas was born. I asked the

children to pick out toys they would want to give to children who

might not have any toys for Christmas. I sent emails to friends

asking for donations of gently used--or non-used--gifts. I asked for

volunteers to bring wrapping paper, tape and scissors and donate time

to the cause. We set up just like a yard sale and put signs up

advertising " Free Christmas Gifts! " . There are three rules for Free

Christmas: everything is free, you may only choose two items, and what

you choose must be a gift for someone else. We set up tables and gift

wrapped all day long.

 

From the first event to the last this has been a huge blessing in my

life. My children finally *got* the meaning of Christmas: the spirit

of giving. Every year they were more and more inclined to let go of

toys they did not use or love. They also began to understand they

could let go of a gift and keep the thought behind it. The volunteers

who came to wrap gifts blessed me, were blessed through giving, and

were also blessed by those who came to choose gifts.

 

The first year of the event, though, was the one that will stand out

most in my mind. It had been a cold day and I was putting everything

away (in boxes, ready to go to Goodwill, of course!), when a young man

in a beat-up car stopped in front of my house. " Do you have anything

left? " he asked, and I told him he could take anything he wanted. He

filled the trunk of his car, then walked up to me, and in a voice

filled with emotion said, " I didn't think I would have anything to

give my kids this year. Thank you. "

 

Needless to say, this has become an annual event.