Christmas...

"It's the most wonderful time of the year." A thick blanket of snow covers the ground and bells tingle in the air. People are "dressed up like Eskimos" and the temperatures drop to -1 million degrees, yet we all have the same jolly smile on our faces because it is Christmas.

For a large bunch of people, presents are pretty much falling from the sky and the stress levels of parents and adults are probably blowing over the roof. Even though they love how their childrens faces light up after each gift they unwrap, the ring of the cashier is constantly going off n the back of their heads.

Maybe spending less is really giving more. What if instead of spending hundreds of dollars on things we really don't need, we spend more time with those we really love, because time is not refundable. Maybe we could go back to the "olden days" and make gifts the "olden ways". Make a card, or picture frame, or macaroni necklace.

Americans spend about $465 billion each Christmas on only gifts, not including decorations, the tree, and Christmas dinner. Even though everyone loves getting presents, do we really need that many? What about those in the world who don't get gifts at Christmas. To populate the entire world with clean, drinkable water, it would cost only $10 billion, and we would still have $455 billion dollars left to spend that year. To feed the entire world, it would cost $30 billion, therefore leaving us with $435 billion.

To give everyone a home, $20 billion and to end world poverty, $175 billion. All these numbers are under the cost of the Christmas presents we buy. If everyone gave a small portion of the money meant to be spent on Christmas gifts to a donation or cause of their choice, these world problems can be minimized or even demolished!

This may be a concept viewed as unrealistic or impossible, and it may be constantly preached and spread, but it really is true. Presents are amazing and I love getting them, as do many others, but it would not kill us to maybe get fewer gifts.

I'm not saying to reject presents from others and buy nothing for the people around you. I am only saying that we could help so many people if we put a few less presents under our tree and put a few more presents under the trees of those who have little to nothing.

As a wise Grinch once said, "Maybe Christmas doesn't come from a store, maybe Christmas means a little bit more."

May this everyday blog, written by an everyday teenager make your day 1 in a million.