No Shopping for Holiday Gifts This Year

By J. Gelband, 12-03-07

“So three of my neighbors brought over Christmas cookies this weekend,” my friend Rachel griped Monday morning. “They were big and green and red and wrapped up all fancy. And I panicked because now I have to give them cookies in return and you know I don’t bake. So I have to go get something at Albertsons today.”

“Or just don’t get them anything,” I suggested. “Don’t perpetuate this routine.”

Rachel doesn’t even eat cookies. “I can’t do that,” she sighed, feeling guilty for even considering to hamper the annual exchange.

Trading recipes with neighbors isn’t so bad. It’s quaint, actually. But like Rachel, I don’t bake – and thank goodness for the colorful Sunday funnies because I don’t really wrap either – and the neighbors probably don’t want a grilled cheese sandwich taped up in soggy newsprint anyway.

But it’s the thought that counts, right?

Not right. I don’t want any thought put into my gifts because I don’t want gifts. I don’t need anymore clutter in my house, even in my fridge, unless it is something that I can’t get for myself, like a car from the future or a pygmy zebra.

And I don’t want to stress and pay for a zillion gifts for my friends and family. I’d rather just be together with them when no one is stressed out.

For the last seven years I’ve asserted my view. “Don’t get me anything because I’m not going to get you anything. Let’s just celebrate with love and peace.” But no one follows that plan and I just end up feeling guilty and going last-minute shopping.

Well, this year, I mean it: I’m not playing the gift giving game.

This year I am heeding the message of the Reverend Billy and his Church of Stop Shopping. Maybe you saw him featured on national TV morning shows or maybe you saw him in Times Square shouting to people to stop shopping. Or maybe you are familiar with his film that opened in November, “What Would Jesus Buy”?

The New York-based performance artist spent Thanksgiving proselytizing the message that Americans shouldn’t buy anything on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, as part of an initiative to abolish “the devil consumerism.”

“Americans are instructed that our way of life is shopping. That our democracy is shopping. Citizenship is shopping. We don’t need towns and cities anymore because we have a shopping experience,” Reverend Billy told CNNmoney. “Our communities are collapsing. We can be so much more than consumers.”

That’s what I mean about celebrating with love and peace. Seems silly to spend time shopping (um, and baking) when we could be doing a real benefit for our neighbors.

With war and poverty and mortgage foreclosures the major issues plaguing society, it is difficult to justify going out to spend. And, seriously, how can anyone justify doing it at 5 a.m.?

The Boise Town Square, in fact, was open at 12:01 a.m. for shopping on Black Friday. So much for sleeping off the tryptophan after a day with family. 

Reverend Billy preaches about the poor and economic justice in addition to how consumerism affects the environment and the (sweatshop) workers – but mostly I’m attuned to his message about money and time spent shopping during the holiday season.

“Make time to spend with your loved ones that doesn’t involve shopping or corporations or logos,” he said. “It’s like getting off alcohol and noticing that you’re not drunk anymore when you stop letting a corporation direct your desires.”

Sure, he’s a performance artist and the character is sort of an act, but the dude has a point.

So this year, I am following his lead and sticking to my guns. No gifts. If my friends and family can’t handle all the giftless time I want to spend with them, I’m just going to have to call Reverend Billy to come and save them himself.