Friday, November 25, 2005

Something for Nothing


I live in a house that is approximately 2500 square feet. Two floors. Two bathrooms. Five bedrooms. Three kids. One wife (this isn't Bountiful, you know).

And tons of shit.

And excuse my language there, but that is pretty much what it is. And I just said to Bev "we don't have enough room." Notice, not "we have too much stuff" or "we need to get rid of stuff" but "we need more room so we can get more stuff."

Today is Buy Nothing Day and I'm personally thankful that it doesn't come closer to Christmas. My kids are right on schedule. Today, on Buy Nothing Day, they spent the afternoon making their Christmas lists. And let's be clear here: this isn't a list; it's a manifesto. It's there own Declaration of Dependence on Consumerism. Forget "God Bless America", how about "God Bless Toys R Us" and "God Bless all those Freaking Stuffed Animals" and I don't need to ask God to bless Wal-Mart at Christmas because he needs to do something else to them.

I can not tell you that we will buy nothing for our kids this Christmas. And I can tell you that opening Christmas Gifts is one of the most exciting days of the year for all of us. And I love Christmas trees. And we are already playing Christmas music (have you ever heard the Trans-Siberian Orchestra?).

At some point I came face to face with the big lie with Christmas that if it's not everything it is "meant" to be, then we will have an unhappy family. I'm not talking content, I'm talking happy. Like there is a part of me that really believes my kids happiness is tied up in the "greatest Christmas gift ever". What a joke. So I picture my kids in therapy because their dad bought them a goat for some kids in Africa instead of gettting them _______ (fill in the blank). And so maybe Christmas gifts aren't even about making someone happy; they are about making ourselves feel better that we gave our kids everything they ever wanted ("needed" doesn't really work with Christmas in most homes) so they can't blame us for their misery.

So, as we conclude Buy Nothing Day on the Busiest Shopping Day of the Year in the United States (and let's not get judgmental, because where will you be on December 26?), I'm not suggesting you not buy Christmas gifts, and I'm not suggesting you don't buy a Christmas Tree (although please don't buy a fake one), but maybe the encouragement is that at Christmas, we try realize that "Less is More", and if we are blessed simply so that we maybe a blessing, we try to live with a little more Holy Tension in this Holy Season.

And Holy Tension costs nothing. Or does it?

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Buy nothing day was an enlightening stretch. I almost lost it half way through, but luckily a beard-totting vegitarian-culturejammer shared his tea with me (not joking). Give your kids an Adbusters mag for Christmas instead. And next year, instead of stuffed animals, they'll ask for a ticket to the location of the next WTO meeting.

Anonymous said...

First of all, the fake Christmas tree sucks. We've had one for 3 years now, and it doesn't smell, so it's not good. As for the christmas gifts, myself as a child loved them. But I don't think I loved them because I would use them, but instead just because I HAD it. Possesion is power, even if it is a stuff animal. What I wish I would have done as a kid is make a calender for the next month and a half, and everytime i used or played with my gift, mark a tally on the calender. I'm sure that by the end of January, my things were gathering dust. But how do you tell that to a 10 year old?

Anonymous said...

Heya, nice to see you've embraced the internet like white on paper. I tried thinking about Christmas as a time of selflessness, placing your time thinking about others primarily and buying them presents, but then there's like 6 billion people we're being selfish towards through our own inter-selflessness (wow, that's ugly English), keeping like 97% of our resources to ourselves.

So now what - blind and lie to ourselves or be hypocrites? Perhaps the world is too big because everyone feels insignificant, like they can't help. Anyways, take it easy Beims.

beim said...

"blind and lie to ourselves or be hypocrites"...or those the only two options? Come on Beckham, you're a radical thinker, there has to be something else...

Anonymous said...

wow. this was brilliant. consistent tone. sincerity. clever. i love the trans-siberian orchestra. you know, i always thought siberia was located near the south pole. there are times i wonder if i'm not a complete dumbass.

Anonymous said...

Yea, there must be something else...I just don't know what yet. I'll make a smoke signal if I have an epiphany - keep an eye out.

Kendra: Yea, so do I.