Four Days Left Until Christmas

Christmas is approaching fast. You have only four days left to overspend your budget and run up credit card bills that will take months to pay off. Okay, okay, I’m sorry to sound so negative about the whole thing. It’s just that so much money is spent at this time of year, and it’s not clear that we really get our money’s worth.

I’m all for buying gifts for children. I get a bigger kick out of watching a child open a gift than I do opening one myself. That’s not to say that I don’t want to receive gifts. I would be disappointed if I didn’t get anything. But, I would be happy to receive a thoughtful, low-cost gift rather than an expensive gift if it meant that the giver would have less financial stress when the credit card bills start arriving in January.

I suppose that I’m not the first person to call for changes in the way we approach the holidays, but I’m not going to complain about commercialization and the lost meaning of Christmas. In fact, my advice applies even if you don’t celebrate Christmas. I urge you to think about what you and your family really enjoy about this time of year and try not to spend time, effort, and money on things that don’t contribute to your happiness.

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