Kaupum ekkert þessi jól!

Buy nothing this christmas

Reynslusaga:

Collect for other families
Our extended family used to exchange names for Christmas. We'd make wish lists for each other to try to cut down on the drudgery of shopping. A few years ago someone got the idea of collecting money for needy families instead of shopping for each other. Usually we give the money to someone that one of our family's knows or has some connection to.

This way of sharing Christmas cheer is much more satisfactory than spending money on each other. The tearful "thank yous" that we have received are better than the "I wonder if I spent as much money as my sister-n-law?" concerns that we used to experience. The generosity is probably exceeded as well.

—Bev Short and Reimar Goetzke, Fort Langley, British Columbia