Holiday Flavoured Maunderings Tuesday, December 05, 2006 I wanted to write a post about things I wanted to make sure I would always remember, but it ended sounding to falsely inspirational, so instead, I will begin by saying I'm bloody cold and Earl Grey Tea is good. Especially if it had enough sugar. *adds* Ah, better. I gave to the local combined charity appeal, partly because I felt like, since they asked me to volunteer to help pass out the stuff, that I ought to. It's not that I don't beleive in giving to charity, I do, a great deal, but I sincerely believe that you shouldn't tell anyone. Because when you tell someone, you get thanked, and then you've gotten your award for it. (There is a line in the bible, that says build your treasure in heaven, and don't do what you do for thanks on earth, because that goes away. It's one of the things I take seriously about my religion.) I don't want an award for it. I want people to get help. So, out of guilt, I did something somewhere else, but I got lazy, and instead of going and getting a postal order I used my credit card. So people will send me a thingy that I can use to deduct what i did off my taxes. Which makes me wonder about the moral implications of removing something you gave as sort of a tribute to your chosen deity from your taxes. I mean, yay, tax break, but there's something...shoddy about it. That's also why i don't want gifts for donating. I mean, ok, I send you a check for twenty dollars, so you're going to blow a quarter of that on sending me something back? Seems silly, to me. And while we're on the subject, did anyone else who participated in NaNoWriMo find the last letter, sort of demanding a donation a trifle...annoying? Or was I just in the mood? Usually I adore the NaNoWriMo letters, but this one rubbed me badly. I will leave whether I donated enough to cover my use of their server for the month or whether the letter made me mad enough to scrap the idea up to you to decide. I can tell you why I give. I give because i can't volunteer, which is better, i think it's much better to put your body where your heart is than just your money, but my situation doesn't give me much time to go and do something. This is the time of year where I am especially easily brought to sentimental tears, and the thing that kills me the most is the idea of kids not getting toys for the holidays. When I was little, we could not always afford a lot of things, but my parents always managed to get me plenty of things. I remember one year when I was certain Christmas would be pretty lean, but I had all sorts of She-Ra dolls...I remember my shock and joy, opening the one with the wings, then getting the one with the green hair and the peacock tail, then Frosta, then Cat-Ra...then the princess of power herself. I think there may even be more...I think there was one called Perfuma. My parents worked hard to make me happy, and so I feel like I owe two fold...I try and make sure my parents get a good Christmas now, and I try to...pass on what happened, so that other kids get something. And then you know how I feel about people being cold, or hungry. I'm getting teary eyed again. Hold on. People then might mock because they say, that Christmas is too commercialized, etc. I've always gone at it with, what i think, is a fairly old attitude. Life is bleak, and the winter is a long, cold path until spring. We need this one last bright time, with the lights, with the good food and family and presents and songs to give us strength to face the winter, to face the world for another year. PS: Still cold. Permalink Cindy scribed this at 9:43 PM 0 comments

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