I have to be honest. When I first read about things like “buy nothing day” and “advent conspiracy” I just wrote them off as gimmicks. When something becomes popular, especially on the blogosphere, it becomes easy for me to write it off to the herd-mentality of people… especially the herd-mentality of Christian bloggers. We’re awful at it (and I’m including myself here).

However, yesterday I was able to participate in something that was a truly brilliant “ah-ha!” moment; while I could always see the reasoning behind the “buy less” movements, I finally fully understood the brilliance of it when you actually buy into the concept.

A friend of mine… okay, okay, a girl that I’m pursuing, had her birthday. One of the things she has come to enjoy doing recently is going on hikes and taking thousands of pictures. I was able to get my hands on a set of a few hundred photographs of a leaf walk she took a few weeks ago. I turned around and created and published a book of her photography with some classical fall poems included.

Last night, at a dinner with just the two of us celebrating her birthday, she pulled the book out of the gift bag and was nearly moved to tears, and in almost a hush said that it was “one of the best gifts I’ve ever received.”

I don’t say this at all to toot my own horn. Far from it.

For a fraction of what a far-less meaningful gift from the mall would have cost, I was able to create and give something of true value.

Her reaction was the most genuine I’ve ever seen from an adult receiving a present… it was almost child like.

Following up on the video, and the giving of time and going back to the Christmas theme, the most memorable gifts I’ve ever received were my brio train-sets as a little kid.

I loved trains. I still do. But, the more I reflect on it, I don’t think it was so much the actual trains that were given to me that filled me with joy every Christmas. Instead, when I opened that train-set, I knew it meant hours of time with my father. Building, playing, and crashing trains into each-other. For many of my fathers faults which I seem to have dwelt on a lot this last year, the giving of his time was never one of them. He was a great father in that sense.

So, I encourage you to really think about what you give this Christmas (or anytime you give a gift). After seeing the reaction I received last night, and the memories of my best gifts, it really is the thought and action behind the gift, not the thing itself that makes all the difference.

May all of you have a blessed Christmas.