12 Anti-Grinch Days Of Christmas – Day #6 Christmas Greed

Day #6 – Christmas Greed – More! More! More!

More stuff!  That is often the thought of some people during the holidays.  I know my youngest would love more stuff but that is because he is young.  My older two only have a few things on their lists which makes things easier for us.  But how can greed be good for Christmas?  Greed is defined as an intense selfish desire for something.  While it is commonly associated with wealth, power, and stuff there are other things that it can be applied to as well.

 I know I have a lot of things going on in my life right now and I really don’t want to take anything else on.  I am ready for this holiday break.  For me, I do have an intense desire for something selfish.  I am looking forward to a large helping of relaxation.  I think the more I can get of it, the better I will be.  I will be greedy in my pursuit of relaxation.  I will want to do things at a slower than normal pace and I want to just go with the flow for once.  If you know me you will think I have gone nuts.  I cannot sit still for more than 30 seconds.  I don’t sleep and I go at 100 miles an hour.  So how on earth am I going to go slow and relax?  I am not sure yet, but that is my plan for the holidays.

I also have an intense selfish desire to be with my kids over the holiday break.  I don’t get to spend near enough time with them so I am happy to finally be able to enjoy their company.  I want more of it.  A lot more of it.  I want to be able to play board games with them, or cards.  Have a discussion that does not center around colleges, school, homework, or helping around the house.  It isn’t to say that all I talk about with them is these things.  It isn’t, but the amount of time I have with them usually is confined to car rides.  This is our place that we talk about other things.  I get the 15 minutes when I pick them up from school.  I want to take them to a movie or just hang out and do nothing.  So I do have an intense, really intense, selfish desire to spend time with them.  Is this greedy?   According to the definition it is.

Something else that I really want more of is some quality time with my wife.  We do not get much of it on a normal basis, so this will be a great break from the normal.  I want to be able to shower her with attention and I would like the same in return.  She often seems as busy as I am so we don’t see each other until bedtime.  Then it is get the kids to bed, finish anything we have left to do and then go to bed ourselves.  We don’t get much “us”time, so I want to remedy that.  I have heard about this newfangled  thing that all the kids are doing these days and I thought the two of us could try it.  It is called a “date”.  It is where we dress up to impress the other person.  One of us drives the other person (usually the one who asks drives but it is negotiable) to some activity or activities outside of the home.  Sometimes you may go to eat.  Or maybe the two of you will go to a movie.  If you are feeling adventurous I heard you may even combine the two.  There are other things you could do as well, bowling, sledding, hitting a play, or any number of things.  I am really excited to try this new thing.  All kidding aside, I am looking forward to going out with her again.  It has been too long since we went out to a nice dinner and were able to enjoy each others company.  Is this a greedy desire of mine?  Is water wet?

I guess what I am trying to get at is that not everything you selfishly desire is bad.  I want more time with those I love and also myself.  I want to be able to relax and enjoy this holiday.  I want to be able to look back and know that the best gift I gave the family this year was the gift of my time and attention.  I just hope they will enjoy it as much as I am looking forward to it.

Merry Anti-Grinchmas!