I admit: I almost didn’t buy Christmas presents this year.
Don’t get me wrong, my Sikh donkey loves this glorious Christian holiday, so I gave people gifts, and good ones at that. I gave my sister, my childhood friend a dope scented candle, and a copy of a picture book for my girlfriend’s sweetheart. But I didn’t buy any of those things. I recorded them.
It is thought that there is a wide-ranging rebirth. A second-hand gift is considered to mean less than a new gift, and if a gift is not repurchased, there was no need to consider it in depth. But I’m here to say that’s dumb. We give gifts to please our loved ones, without showing our spending abilities (usually, at least). And there’s no reason why something previously loved can’t make someone happy while reducing the burden sin excessive generation adds on the planet.
It’s not like I’m giving out sucking gifts. The earrings I received as a gift from my girlfriend home last year, and I loved them so I kept them around, but my ears are not scratched and probably not. I was also given the scented candle, but I’m not into its powdery smell. And I had the picture book, and I loved it, but I don’t need it anymore, so I’m giving it to someone else who can appreciate it.
Giving unwanted or loved gifts is also a more sustainable option. At the very least, it’s a hell of a lot better than keeping unnecessary rubbish in our flats until we finally decide to separate methods and throw it in the trash, sending it to a landfill or waste incinerator where it is intended to contribute to the toxicity and pollution of the planet’s warming.
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Re-gifts – or any other personal choices regarding Christmas gifts for that matter – will not fundamentally address the political problems that have led to our global crisis of waste and overproduction. In our global economy, materials – clothing, candlesticks, whatever they are – are made not to fill a specific need, but to maximize profit, and to advance a few stray results will not change the whole system. The big problem is not present, the reason is profit, child.
But with the option, I’d rather not throw something away if I know someone else would want it. I also hand over my used materials gently, but it’s nice to make someone who likes you as well.
For what it’s worth, not only am I cool by giving gifts that have been presented before, but also by receiving them. Some of the best gifts I ever received – jewelry, pottery, a table, a guitar pedal – were items the donor had already used.
Most people celebrating Christmas have certainly opened their presents now. But you can keep the holiday spirit going by continuing to give things away. Take away that mug that your mother gave you that you don’t need because your closet is too busy, or that sweater that doesn’t fit you. Hell, give that stuff away doing suitable for you too, once you are done with it. Not to be Marie Kondo all, but are you really going to read that book again, or stick with that dress in the back of your sick closet? Give it to a friend you know who likes it, and who can be cool enough to let you borrow for a night when we can all safely go out in groups again. You will clean up some space in your home, and save some space in the waste stream. And maybe you make someone feel good too.