Yesterday on the show we talked about how people are cutting back on Christmas this year, and we asked you how the holidays would be diferent at your house this season! We got many great calls and emails and here's one of them I wanted to share!
Keep the spirit! Happy Holidays!
Carey, I listened to your program last night on the way home, and thought I'd share with you a couple of my favorite Christmas presents - you can't beat 'em - that are very inexpensive, and soooo memorable. No one has to go without being celebrated over the holidays. These are the times that inspire the gifts that we actually remember from one year to the next.
1.) The best one is a letter. No kidding. You might illustrate it; or if you feel like you can't draw well, just do something cartoony. You may not believe me, but what matters most is that it comes from your hands and your heart. Here are some ideas for content:
• A review of the recipient's year. Every year has some special - or weird - moments. Celebrate them! My daughter's favorite tv show is the oldie from the '70s: the Incredible Hulk. So I'll have a drawing of that in her letter; or I could photocopy or printout a Hulk Image and then color over it with crayons and colored pencils. Then I'll write a few words about the dangers of turning green! hehe
• What this person means to you in two easy paragraphs, or in a very short rhyme. Corny is beautiful, as long as its heartfelt. You already know this: think back on some of your favorite songs! hehe
• A favorite poem or song lyrics, one that you think reflects who the recipient is, or that you know has special meaning to that person. Put it in your own handwriting. You could say or write a sentence or two as to why you chose that poem or that song. The public library is a great resource for this. You don't have to have a card to look through the books.
• A humorous memory from this past year.
• (For older people) a letter about what you were doing or what you were like when you were the age of the recipient. Or when you got your first bicycle, your first job, your driver's license, your first cigarette, when you left home, when Romeo finally popped the question, when someone said just the right thing at the right moment....anything like that.
For a little something extra, enclose a photograph, a printed-out image (remember that most libraries have computers and photocopiers), a stick of gum, or the name of the book from which you drew the quote or poem. These are the priceless presents that people will have framed, or will keep under their pillow or in a special book for the rest of their lives. It only costs you a bit of time and things you already have on hand. Don't worry about how well you write. Just make it sound the way you talk. Bad spelling can make it all the more charming, so don't sweat the small stuff.
Years ago, when I turned 21, I received a piece of jewelry from my grandmother. It had a story all its own. But do you know what I remember most about it? The little slip of paper inside the box that said, "for Laura, on her 21st birthday!". It was in her handwriting, and she must have put away that little box before I was 10. Sometimes the "little things" are really big!
2.)"Small stuff" brings me to the second idea. I just went to a website (www.oldenglishcrackers.com - no; I'm not in anyway affiliated with them except as a customer) and for under $30, with shipping, ordered all the materials necessary to make 25 Christmas crackers. For up to 25 people, then. I will have to add in my own wrapping paper, low temp glue gun (you can get these for under $7.00), and fillings. (My order included the little "snap" strips that make the "pop" sound when you pull the cracker apart; small cardboard tubes - but you could use toilet paper rolls; folded crepe paper party hats; instructions (free)- but you can google these up; and one set of "rollers" to make the job easier.) So what will I fill these with? For the person who dreams of having a Porsche one day, I might look for a Matchbox Cars version of it. I'll find a box of gorgeous Christmas candy, and put one piece of it in each cracker (example: a petit four or a maple candy Santa). I might google up some Christmas joke - or other corny humour; I could get a librarian to help me find just the right thing - there's usually a person at the reference desk standing by for just such questions. (Yes, my sister is a librarian. And she adores helping folks find the information, or the quote that they want!) Or I might come up with a fortune cookie-style bit of paper, which might have a very few affirming words, or inspirational quote for a specific person. (Again, check out the library.) There are lots of little things out there - such as a marble that looks like the earth, foil covered chocolate, silver colored charms for good luck or to spark a memory, miniature Playdough; confetti; a beautiful stamp, a shiney, new quarter or half dollar - the bank will help you get a great one. Ideas will come to you as you get going. All you have to do is fill it with something that shows you know that person a bit, and that you care. Believe me, it will be fun for you to assemble and decorate; and they will remember that cracker. For years.
I hope these will be useful, and that everyone gives and receives a bit of joy over the holiday season. That's really what it's all about anyway.
Merry Christmas!
Laura
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