Not sure how we have found ourselves back in December so soon. The holiday season is gearing up and it might just be a holiday season that is reminiscent of how we celebrated pre-COVID.
COVID and some nasty flus and colds are still swirling around, and we need to be mindful about factoring in how our actions affect others more than we ever did before the pandemic hit.
In this past year, I started my own Indigenous communications consulting firm, traded in the old, dented minivan, and moved into a house. We are in the process of finding a little cat or two, now that we can finally have pets.
Every year, my daughter likes to go Christmas shopping for me, and she is one fantastic gift-giver. This year, she asked me what I wanted for Christmas. I was sitting in our new living room, on the first new couch I’ve ever purchased in my life — it was discounted and in the back of the store, but new nonetheless.
“There is nothing else I need,” I told her, and I was shocked to hear myself say that.
This feeling surprised me, because there have been many moments in my life that I was wishing for something. Sometimes it was laundry soap, a car that didn’t leak litres of oil each week, or enough money to afford a two-bedroom place, so my daughter could have her own room.
Usually there is some type of new kitchen gadget I’d like. Last year, the milk-frother my daughter bought me was a standout gift.
I come from humble beginnings. In Grade 2, a teacher asked each student to share the favourite Christmas gifts they received that year. That was the moment I learned children received the toys I saw on television commercials. Up until then, I thought they were just cool things kids saw on TV.
Early in my journalism career, I wrote one of my favourite columns, titled: “Everything I ever wanted for Christmas and never got.”
I talked about Easy Bake ovens and the talking Teddy Ruxpin doll with the cassette tape in his back. It was written to be funny. As I wrote it, I asked my co-workers what gifts they’d wanted as children and never received. Both looked at me and said: “We always got what we asked for.”
It was just like Grade 2 all over again.
When I returned to work after my maternity leave, things were hard. I would search my house for quarters to buy milk because you can’t tell a one-year-old that there’s no milk. I couldn’t afford new work clothes, so I wore sweaters all summer.
Today, I am not living in luxury, but I am grateful for all I have at this moment, and reminded of the many times in my life when I didn’t. I feel privileged for the life I’ve worked to build with my daughter, and appreciative for all the people who have helped me along the way.
There is a teaching that spans many cultures: “Remember where you come from.”
We have all dealt with struggles in our lives and if we’ve been lucky enough to overcome them, it’s time to pay it forward. It can be easy to get caught up in our hardships, but it doesn’t do anything for the person revisiting the painful memories, or the people around them.
There are many times in my life when I’ve been given gifts and opportunities, and been cut some slack when I needed it.
Even the lovely house we’ve moved to we are renting from friends, and we are ever so grateful for the gift and opportunity.
I know there are many people in our community who are struggling all the time.
If you are like me and feeling blessed, remember there is someone else out there who is hoping for a gift or opportunity or to be cut some slack. If you choose to offer one of these to someone you know, make sure you do it with sincerity. No one ever wants to feel like someone’s project.
Another great option would be to donate to the Times 91原创 Christmas Fund. When I was a child, we received Christmas hampers every year, and they were a highlight.
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