Heavy

Caden and I were driving through a very ritzy community one day with lots of mansion-like homes lining the street. The kind of homes where you could fit 10 houses like mine in the foyer. I didn't know that Caden was paying attention to what was going on outside, but all of a sudden he pointed to one of the homes and said, "Dat house is heavy!"
"You're right!" I said laughing. "It IS heavy!"
I thought that was one of the deepest statements I had heard in a long time. America is a 'rich' nation, but the majority of us overspend and live way above our means, giving us huge amounts of stress which can cause family trouble, addictions, health problems, etc. Even though we live in a 1290 square foot home, Jay and I still fall into the category of having eyes bigger than our bank account. Buying a house is always something to be excited about, but Jay and I are the first to admit that given our situation, we had no business buying when we did. We also despise past Jay and Kathy for buying a brand new car without even looking around....we have lived and we have learned and we're excited to do it right next time. Luckily, we make it work (through Divine intervention)...but there are many who can't and that's insanely troublesome and 'heavy'.
We are VERY blessed, but material-wise, we don't have a whole lot..we have what we need, so I'm ok with that. I'm actually obnoxiously excited about deals. I get giddy when I find outfits at the Goodwill. I sell Caden's old stuff on craigslist to buy him new stuff because that just make sense to me..I call it 'recycling'. Living pay cheque to pay cheque means having to be creative, especially during the holidays.
A woman posted an ad on craigslist about how her son's eyes are so bad that he needs to stand really close to the TV in order to see it. She said that when he sneezes, he hits his head on the screen..that's how close he has to stand to it.
Instead of asking for glasses or money for a vision exam, she asked for someone to give her family a big screen TV so that he would be able to see it clearly. I ALMOST wrote her...but refrained...it would not have been a Christmasy email.
Is this seriously what Christmas has become? I love the holidays, I love hearing my son sing Christmas songs about Baby Jesus, I love that he loves Santa and Christmas lights and ornaments with his picture on them (courtesy of his school), I love sticking my Christmas cards to the pantry door and putting Caden's Christmas crafts on the fridge. I love cookies and candy canes and hot, apple cider...but I refuse to give into this notion that I must go broke to make this holiday special for my child. Am I a bad parent because I found a used library book online for him for Christmas that I know he's going to love?
I was standing in line at the post office yesterday to mail a small Christmas package to my in-laws and the woman in front of me had about 25 boxes to mail. She looked at me, she looked at my parcel and said disapprovingly, "So I'm the over doer and you're the under do-er." WHAT!?! She had no idea that what lay in my tiny Christmas parcel was going to make my husband's parents super happy! She was simply judging me based on quantity, not quality!
Am I a bad person for spending less than $200.00 for everyone combined this Christmas? Maybe I am...but I don't remember what I got for Christmas when I was 2.5. I don't even remember what I got for Christmas when I was 19. Heck, I don't remember what I got last year! But I do remember baking Christmas cookies, driving around to see the lights, having my picture taking with Santa...all things that we have done with our son this year. These things cost nothing but time and energy (and whatever materials you need for cookies :) but they mean everything. Pastor Phil called it being 'relationally rich'.
I know it's a worn out tune, the frustration with the commercialism of Christmas, but I am jumping on the bandwagon to say that enough is enough. Don't hold back from giving to your children and loved ones, but give what you can, not above what you're able. Have a Merry Christmas, not a Heavy one.