How can a gift reflect our care for Creation? The answers are as unique as our personal “gifts.” Reflecting on this can provide a refreshing perspective.
If the gift is food, it can be locally made or grown. We can drown in sweets this time of year, so how about a wonderful soup, packaged for the fridge or freezer to nourish others in a busy season? Potatoes and other root crops are hearty and local and mix well with healthy greens such as kale and chard and spinach.
Maybe this is the time to make a family favorite to share. Savoring the memory of family meals, you can share the recipe and a story of a special relative. I lived for a year with Islander Asta Schade who was an amazing baker. Even into her 80s she baked loaves swirling with spices and chopped fruit and nuts. She worked during the fall to prepare batch after batch with nearly 200 loaves for friends and family. I loved coming home to a house filled with her latest batch cooling.
Reduce, reuse, recycle can have a new spin with a gift. I’ve been given family pieces during the holidays that I really cherish. Every time I set out my family candlesticks I think of the gatherings in previous generations that they presided over.
When it comes to giving a new item, consumer pressures abound. Learning that only 6 percent of the resources extracted actually end up in most items shows how wasteful most manufacturing practices are. A new purchase that is sustainable is an Energy Star appliance. Refrigerators, washers and dryers are definitely big ticket items, but the energy savings are substantial. Water District 19, in an effort to encourage less water use, is even offering a rebate to those Islanders who purchase energy-efficient washing machines.
Giving experiences instead of stuff is a wonderful option. An annual membership or passes to museums, movies, the zoo or aquarium in our area or where your loved ones live is a great gift. If you’re really blessed, you get to accompany them for a visit and see their faces light up with wonder at the new experience.
Another intriguing idea is to give a gift to the poorest among us. Episcopal Relief and Development has a catalogue devoted to such items. Just $12 provides a malaria net that can protect people from the bites of night-flying mosquitoes that cause malaria. Our local shop Giraffe has cards available so you give a life-saving gift of a malaria net in a friend or family member’s name. Also, any gift purchased at Giraffe benefits artisans in developing countries.
With imagination and gratitude, may this gift-giving season bring joy. May your choices help heal the planet.
— Julia Lakey lives on Vashon and works to heal the planet.
