When people are enjoying a Thanksgiving feast, it’s sometimes hard to know when to say “enough is enough.”
We may be stuffed, but the food is so tempting and guests don’t want to disappoint a hostess who has worked hard to prepare a sumptuous dinner. Just a little more won’t hurt. It’s more than we need, but it’s the holidays.
As we move into the holiday season, however, those who have the means to indulge themselves and their families might consider rethinking their spending habits. What if we took all or part of that money and used it to help some people who are less fortunate, people who may be simply scraping by, wondering how they are going to pay for the heat or buy food for a holiday dinner.
Wouldn’t that truly reflect the spirit of the season?
In the current sagging economy, more than the usual number of people are struggling. Some of us are dismayed by our shrinking investments or retirement accounts, but for others, the economy may have meant cutbacks or the loss of a job. We’ve had some reprieve from high gasoline prices, but, although gasoline prices were blamed for higher prices across the board, we haven’t seen the reductions we would hope for in the price of food and other goods. Officials of the local natural gas utility say rate increases won’t be as high as they had feared, but they still are expected to rise by 10 percent to 15 percent this winter.
For many people, it’s next to impossible to afford the essentials, let alone the frills that many of us enjoy at Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Some of us have everything we need or maybe far more than we need. Taking at least a year off from extravagant holiday spending for family and friends would hardly be noticed. We want our local retailers to have a strong holiday season, but what if, instead of spending more on ourselves, we gave some of that money to other people to spend on things they wouldn’t otherwise be able to afford?
Maybe this is the year to say “enough is enough, we don’t need any more.” Doing less for ourselves and more for others would be a great way to spread the true spirit of the holiday.
Comments
Chris Ogle 9 years, 6 months ago
Right on. We would have much less holiday stress if we followed this advice. And those who are struggling would appreciate it more than we could imagine.
Danimal 9 years, 6 months ago
I don't mind giving a helping hand to others when I can, but in the midst of the worst economy in a quarter century, and perhaps longer, I just don't have any extra to give. If I do I'm going to be hyper-selective of who I help out because there are a lot of people right now who are moaning and groaning about how hard they have it who aren't that bad off.
Robert Marble 9 years, 6 months ago
what's with this "we" crap? Many of us already do- and have been for years. Speak for yourselves people, don't drag the rest of us into your guilt. You shouldn't need some guilt laden piece of writing to goad you into action- common decency should suffice.
gl0ck0wn3r 9 years, 6 months ago
How much did Dolph do this year?
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