I wanted to be able to proclaim with pride today that I did not leave the house at all on Black Friday, but I am committed to being honest. I ran out of half & half and cat litter, and those are substances on which this house depends, separately, so at nine this evening, I made a quick run to a mostly deserted Publix, and calmly made my purchases. Thus endeth the entirety of my Black Friday shopping. I did not buy anything online, nor did I go out yesterday to harass underpaid retail clerks who weren't allowed to nap off their turkey coma like I was.
Let me say something that I want to be perfectly clear. Friends, family: I love you. Period. I love the time and attention you have given me. I love the beings that you are. I love the arguments we have had, good natured or not. I love the lessons you have shared with me. Please believe that this is true, because what I do not want to do to express my love for all of you is to buy things made of plastic, assembled in distant sweatshops for meager wages, shipped around the world burning fuel and polluting the skies and the seas, sold by clerks who receive too little money and less respect from their corporate overlords, that will later be obsolete or unused, and finally a burden on a landfill somewhere. If I give gifts this year, I want them to be consumed. I want to give my time and attention back to you, in the form of company, or food, or art, or entertainment. I want to be of use to you somehow, if you would only ask. And if you want to give something to me, make it the same. My favorite thing in the entire world is attention. It always fits, and the color always flatters. If we live far apart, and can't share company for Christmas, then do something and think of me. Go visit your grandmother, and talk about the distant past. Or tip your waitress ludicrously well. Or remember something really stupid I said once, and laugh at what a dork I was, but in a nice "bless her heart" sort of way. Any of these would be the best present I could get this year.
I long ago soured on the idea that our sole purpose as humans was to be consumers. It makes my stomach clench to remember when we were told, "everything is fine; just go out and shop." I am not a consumer. I am a citizen. That carries with it so much more responsibility. It is my goal to be informed, conscious, and active, not just in a political sense, but in a human sense. I live to learn and to grow. I have everything I truly need. From here all I want is to be connected to you all, in a thoughtful and caring way. Will you accept this gift from me?
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