Holidays = consumption

Ok, so the Christmas holidays are really about the consumption of material goods, are they not? There can be stories of Jesus and Santa. There can also be 'shortest day of the year' winter traditions, which involve candles and eating food and other wonderful things. However, the main purpose of the current holiday is to buy a whole bunch of stuff and give it away. Mass consumption that kills our planet... or... joyous gift giving event involving guilt or gravy or graciousness.

I find it interesting to see how different families, who celebrate Christmas, do the present thing. Last year, in an attempt to not over-consume, I limited the number of gifts my children received. And I felt like they were kind of cheated, in a way, because they received fewer gifts that I did as a kid. This year, I copied more of what I received when a child.... and I really felt that I went a bit overboard. So now I am conflicted: I want my kids to have a nice holiday, and receive nice presents, just as I did. However, I recognize that as being excessive. We are not living in 1976, and the environmental implications of insane purchasing decisions are significant. I guess I am realizing that the world today is a different place than it was, and I can make choices for my children that involve gift giving but without the crappy plastic toys made in China that they play with for two weeks and then forget. That is another aspect of gift giving today that is different from the 1970s... there is so much more to choose from and it is so damn cheap! And so these birthdays and Christmas events roll around, and the kids receive a whole heck of alot of toys from friends and relatives. A society of over-consumption is reflected in gift giving.

I continue to not have a solution, as of now, as my kids interact with other kids, and see what they receive at their birthdays. I have tried to encourage small presents, and regifting, but without any success. We do not live in a enviro bubble, but the world is environmentally bad... for now, I am completely stuck on how to approach this issue. I guess that is the contradiction inherent in the two words Suburban and Activist.