Charity begins at home. Christmas wishes for everyone.

As the title says: "Charity begins at home".

Most people think charity only means giving something "tangible" to others.

The true meaning of charity goes far beyond the "giving" of gifts.

The dictionary also defines charity as :

1. Benevolent goodwill toward, or love of, humanity.

2. Lenient judgment of others

It saddens the heart to see (or hear) meanness toward others anytime, but more so during the "Holiday Season".

Mean spirited-ness is defined by the making of vile comments so low as to be out of accord with normal standards of human decency and dignity.

Christmas means different things to different people.

For the reverent (or worshipers) it simply means "Christ's mass".

For the non christian, it means "Christmas-tide":

The festival season from Christmas eve till after new years day that has nothing to do with base religious beliefs.

While dining out with a dear friend the other day, we overheard a rather "loud" conversation from the table next to us.

They were discussing Christmas celebrations in general.

The woman was angry about a Jewish family that they know that are 'celebrating' Christmas.

She thought it was terribly inappropriate for such "people" to be celebrating the birth of Christ when they were the ones who "killed" him, as if it happened yesterday.

There was more heated and "mean" rhetoric that disrupted tables around them, that was irrelevant for the purpose of this article. But, amazingly no one who over heard those remarks challenged her [for fear of starting a public brawl, one would suppose].

As a people, we tend to simply ignore the ignorance and view those who publicly proclaim it, with quiet disdain.

That is what we simply call "freedom of speech" today, no matter how hateful and disturbing it truly is.

Every year we see folks picketing stores and urging people NOT to buy gifts in order to not "feed the greed" of Corporate America.

While that may be the case, picketing will never change the spirit of "Christmas-tide".

It is a tradition that will not be easily rejected by the majority, nor should it ever be.

Commercialism and greed are the 'ugly' parts of this social "holiday" and many participants view the exchange of "gifts" as relevant based only on the price that is paid for them.

"Personalizing" gift selections for those we care about is so much more 'meaningful'.

If anyone is slighted by the "price" of gifts they receive, then they were not worthy of the time, or money spent, in procuring the gift in the first place.

Setting price limits for family members may be the best solution to avoiding that problem. Making a rule that all gifts must be within a set price limit ( example: $20.00 to $50.00) being the price range of gifts; and with a limit of 1-2 gifts per person. These basic rules for gift giving would be more sensible and rational than going into debt to allay any negativity about a person's 'generosity'.

"Necessities" always make nice gifts.

Extraneous and costly items are best bought when the need for them arises, and finances permit, during the rest of the year.

Handmade items are more personal when they reflect a particular sentiment between the gift "giver" and the "recipient".

The greatest gift at Christmas-tide is the gathering of family and friends to share quality time and love together.

We should be celebrating our holidays by enjoying comradary (camaraderie) of sharing precious time with family and friends filled with, peace, love, and goodwill. And pledging to keep that love and friendship throughout the year and not just on special occasions.

Enjoy your holidays and try to stay forever young in heart and spirit - from my family to yours.

by: d.william 12/19/2013