"But perhaps the real problem is not how to afford expensive gifts, but rather, do we really need all this stuff?"
Indeed.... I've not checked out Lizzie's blog, but I will be sure to. But, oh, dear, this is going to get me off on my annual holiday rant.... Please, please don't read further if you enjoy the commercialism.
On the subject at hand, my husband & I, desparately still trying to keep Christmas commercialism at bay as much as possible, continue to ask just this very question. We are appalled at the obscene, and yes, I believe it is, spectacle of ultra-expensive gift giving, people waiting in line for hours to get their kids all the "must-have" gifts of the moment or themselves the "must-have" electronic gadget or wide-screen TV, etc. The Wal-Mart tragedy is simply the inevitable result of this obsession with material goods.
It's not just appalling when those who buy these things can't afford them, but even when those who can do so--what does it teach our children? That Christmas is merely an excuse to get more stuff? That stuff is the goal of life? What happened to the days when parents spent, say, $100 to $200 per kid? Or spent only what they could afford, even if it meant giving just one or two nice gifts from a list of 10? Now it seems that parents feel compelled to spend $500, $800, $1000, or more per child. Or to make sure their kids get everything on their lists. Even if one can afford it, really, do our children need all this stuff?
We've tried hard to reduce this in our family. Though we're careful not to go overboard at Christmas, our families do. We've had to ask them to NOT get them so much stuff! To instead take some of the money they would have spent on our kids and give it to charity or gift drives for underprivileged kids. Or get them one or two nice gifts instead of a huge assortment. We don't need it. And we don't want our kids to lose what's important--spending time with family, giving thanks for what we have, contemplating the plight of others less fortunate and deciding what we can do to help, and, because we are Christian, celebrating what Christmas is supposed to commemorate. (Not saying others can't "do" Christmas, just giving a personal perspective here.)
It saddens me, it really does. We finally, as I posted a few days ago, decided we "have" to get our oldest son a video-game system. He plays PC games, but I need to get him off my 'puter! And all, literally, of his friends have them and he's beginning to feel like an outcast. He's a natural loner, anyway, and we're trying to ensure he has things he can share and talk about with friends. To us, it's a matter of helping him socially, not giving him something he thinks he "needs." But regardless, I find it distressing that kids today are getting these things at younger & younger ages, are forgetting how to just "play," and feel entitled to all the newest "stuff," regardless of whether or not their parents can afford it. And parents, in the press to "keep up," find it necessary to dig themselves into debt so their kids can have the latest of everything. And will wait for hours to shop at dawn or before to get it, and will even trample another human being to death to do it. And then, get angry because the store closes.
It's so incredibly sad.
