Collecting ivy in the snow last year.

Michaela and I have been talking about Christmas.

I know, it is only the beginning of November, but we for several years now we have been really struggling with the whole commercial aspect of what for us, ought to be a celebration of much simpler much less worldly things.

Christmas is for many a time of debt as we feel such pressure to buy ever more expensive stuff.

It is a time too when many are lonely and the enforced pressure to consume just underlines the isolation.

Last year, I posted several pieces about this on this blog (here and here for example) but in the end we were carried along with the tide, as a choice to do Christmas differently would not just affect us, it would also affect our kids and our friends.

But this year we would like to start to do things differently, if we can.

So below is an open letter to our friends-

Dear friends

Last year many of you bought us so many lovely things for Christmas. We are so grateful that you think so much of us that you would take the time to buy gifts.

We know that it is good to receive, and even better to give, but the most important thing to us is your friendship, and in this we are blessed.

But this year, we want to try to make Christmas a little bit different- for these reasons-

• We have so much, and others so little
• We think that the meaning of Christmas as a festival has been lost under all the commercial madness
• Christmas can be so stressful for people- the pressure to shop and spend money at a time when things are very tight
• We have talked about wanting to do something different, but have decided that it is now time to actually time to do something

So we would like to humbly suggest that you do not buy us gifts this year.

Some of you are very organised (and very kind,) so may already have bought things with us in mind. If so, it might be possible to give these things to other people, or if not- give them to us anyway!

If some of you would still like to give some kind of gift, then we are intending to make a collection for Oxfam- purchasing some ‘Oxfam unwrapped‘ gifts in the new year.

We really hope to find a way back to a more simple way of doing Christmas- and so most of the gifts we give this year will be things we have made, or commitments/promises. Please know that we think very highly of you, and hope that this Christmas is your best yet.

Love

Chris and Michaela