Obligation FREE, Consumerism FREE Christmas.
We are breaking FREE! This year, instead of falling for the hype, our family is running in the other direction. Firstly, we are avoiding the obligatory 3 hour drive to sister’s place, watching every one open expensive and superfluous gifts, putting on grateful faces when we receive ours and squirming at the proliferation of plastic the kids receive and the fact that children their age probably made them on the night shift in some “developing” country.
Secondly, we won’t have to suffer the judgement hanging in the air that we’re food fascists banning our children from eating this, that and the other. We won’t have to watch our family gulp down fruit pies, danishes, christmas cake and lollies, smile and talk loudly for a few minutes and then go lie down for the rest of the day, occasionally grumpily demanding we get our high energy children under control.
Thirdly, we are avoiding the frustrating search through air conditioned, fake smelling, utterly uninspiring concrete and plastic shopping centres for the perfect gift for so and so. Walking past piles of socks in gawky plastic christmas packaging that will still be in landfill when our grandchildren have grandchildren. Explaining to our children why there are fir trees, snow and holly all over everything when they’ve never seen such things before.
This year, we are running away. Christmas day will be spent making love, doing yoga, watching videos, playing with kids and walking on the beach. No presents, no over eating, no politeness! We will wear our sloppiest clothes and ignore the phone.
We are not Christians. We are not even Monoethists. And even if we did believe this one man was and is the only son of God, why celebrate his birthday with obligation and gluttony?
Instead, this year, we choose to celebrate the Solstice. The Sun and the Son. The life, the love, our connection to each other and to All. December 21 is the longest day of the year, with the shortest night. The Sun is at his most powerful.
Explaining to our kids what we are celebrating is so-o-o-o much easier. High summer flows with the power of abundance and creative energy. It’s the time of year plants flower and bear fruit of the largest proportions. We are in the summer of our lives, in our twenties and thirties, when we begin our journey with children or other major projects climax. Our creativity is at its highest, the power of the sun shines upon and through us and we manifest our dreams at at extraordinary rate and with incredible ease and joy. Everyone loves Summer why not celebrate it.
We will be in Sydney this year so we plan to go to the Everglades Summer Solstice Festival in the Blue Mountains Sunday 18. Next year however, we’ll host a big Summer Solstice Celebration of our own. This way the family will be satisfied with a gathering, we will be celebrating something that means more to us and the kids can still enjoy pressies.
Giving presents is a wonderful way to celebrate abundance. We have come across an idea that gives me goosebumps everytime I think of it. This year our family will give alternative gifts. This year our relatives and friends will receive a pair of chickens for a boy in Solomon Islands to help him get his family out of poverty or a gift pack to help a poor Bengalese woman start a small business or a goat for an african family in crisis. Charity organisations like World Vision and Heifer International, or our favourite, Oxfam Unwrapped, use our donation to help share our abundance is so many ways. We will get a card with a cheery explanation of what we have contributed to another needier human. We sign this card and give it as a gift. Our friends and family will be so warmed and so inspired, they will probably do it themselves next year… Goosebumps again…
We had so much fun buying presents for everyone, we’ll never think of gift shopping the same way again. We highly recommend giving this way. Most of these services take 5 days to get your card to you, so unless you want to download a pdf version and print it, get onto it today.
We hope you gave a stress free, obligation free, consummerism free, happy, relaxed and nourishing time planning your Christmas or Summer Solstice.
About the Author...
Joanne Hay, Editor of Nourished Magazine, Chief Nourisher and Mother of three is very grateful to live in Byron Bay and be able to share all she has learned about Nourishment. She has trained as an Acupuncturist (unfinished), Kinesiologist (finished) and parent (never finished). She serves the Weston A Price Foundation as a chapter leader. She loves sauerkraut, kangaroo tail stew, home made ice cream, her husband Wes and her kids Isaiah, Brynn and Ronin (in no particular order…well maybe ice cream first).
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