christmas treasure.
we're all pretty lucky aren't we? you're probably reading this on a computer (or your smartphone). maybe you're doing it while sitting at work, or on the couch in your warm house. you may be pinching pennies, or you might be rolling in cash, a la scrooge mcduck, but either way, i bet you're going to have a christmas this year, however small or large.and that's part of our christmas treasure. the ability to celebrate in comfort, and maybe even give a gift or two to the ones we love. but as Mister Man reminded me tonight when i was trying to think of what to write, not everyone is so lucky to have that type of treasure.
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i work for a company that makes giving back to the community a priority. so much so, that i can leave work for an hour once a week to go volunteer at a local school, and they encourage it. recently i started volunteering as a reading buddy at a charter school in the city, a school where 95% of the kids get free or reduced lunch and breakfast. a school where half the students speak english as their second language. a school where some of the kids' families are so transient, they might switch schools multiple times in a year.so it might not surprise you to hear that most of the kids at the school don't get christmas presents at home. they don't get excited when you ask them what they want, because it doesn't seem real enough or possible enough to them.this year the school is doing a toy drive for the kids, and my division at work is participating by bringing in toys, stocking stuffers and hats and mittens for these kids so they can have a christmas experience that all kids should have...opening something up that's just for them and knowing that someone thought of them enough to give them their own christmas treasure.
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this christmas, let's remember that a little goes a long way when it comes to sharing our christmas treasure. you don't need to make a big gesture of donating to charity instead of buying physical gifts for people, or donate all the gifts you receive to charity (although if you do that, more power to you!). $5 buys a lot of canned goods for the food shelf. a small toy isn't so small to the child who doesn't have any toys of their own. an hour at the nursing home visiting residents may be the thing that brightens a whole month of someone who lives there.
and i know none of you needs ideas of where to share your treasure, you can find organizations anywhere! but in the spirit of the season, and if you're looking for new ideas, here are a couple of organizations that i think are especially wonderful places to start, especially at christmastime.
feeding america. people always need food. and at christmas, when photos of food and songs about food and people talking about food are everywhere, it's especially hard for those who are going hungry. and right now, every donation you make is matched dollar for dollar thanks to a grant from unilever.
toys for tots. who doesn't want to make sure a little kid has a toy on christmas? it's a no-brainer. if you normally give to toys for tots, remember that the tots have lots of options (it's fun to buy little kid toys!), but that the older kids and teenagers are sometimes forgotten. consider donating a "toy" for the older aged kids, like a hair straightener or makeup for a girl, or a football or a new wallet for a boy.
as Mister Man said to me as i started to write, "sometimes someone's christmas treasure is something they received from a complete stranger." sometimes to make sure everyone has a christmas treasure, we need to be thoughtful in what we're doing with ours.
for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. matthew 6:21
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