Love for Sale

Christmas is an exciting time.  We get a day off of work, kids get out of school for a week or so, most people get a bunch of "free" stuff ("free" because in order to get stuff you typically have to have a tradition of giving stuff, so it's not always entirely free), & we get to eat like it's Thanksgiving again.  Family meets with family, people who don't like each other are sometimes more tolerant, and the spirit of giving and kindness which Jesus would want to be his legacy rises in the general population. 
I'm not fond of the commercialization of Christmas, but if it wasn't that it would be something else.  The spirit of giving manifests itself in the retail world as "huge sales" and "clearance offers."  It's often a good opportunity to get stuff you (or loved ones) want for a great discounted price, especially just after Xmas, when the demand is greatly reduced and remaining stock needs to be cleared out.  There is definitely a give and take about it all.
I feel a strong emotional rush when I'm buying something I know my loved ones will be very excited with.  I was just on amazon.com spending a fair chunk of credit (the more expensive it is, the bigger the rush, in a way) & tears came to my eyes thinking of just how much she deserves for me to spend way too much and then some on her.  I hope she's as happy getting it as I am giving it to her.  She really deserves the best.  It's not diamonds.

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