Thursday, December 04, 2008


Wanna Go Cheap for the Holidays?

Holiday Traditions mean a lot to people, particularly people in retail--Michael Feldman

I love Christmas. I receive a lot of presents I can’t wait to exchange.--Henny Youngman

I bent over to show my Alzheimer’s patient my rainbow beaded heart pin with white beaded wings. “It was a present,” I cheerfully noted. After a few seconds, she asked, “Do you get many presents?”

I lingered on that question, smiled and joyfully answered, “Yes I do. I get presents everyday. I get smiles from you, and jokes in my email box. My husbands kiss me good night and my friends hug me. I get a lot of presents.”
She smiled and said, “Very Good.”

The season is upon us for giving, receiving, saving, overspending, returning, exchanging, re-gifting, mailing and recycling presents. Instead of doing brain exercises like, Suduko or crosswords, we use our brain waves to figure the costs of gift exchange rate for co-workers, postal services and baking items. ”Paper or plastic?” does not refer to how we want our groceries bagged. How are we going to pay for all this “stuff?”

The gifts of hearty laughter or sharing a smile are 2 of the greatest gifts you can give and receive. Both are great for re-gifting, and cost effective for any budget. Worried about connecting long distance? To quote Victor Borge, “Laughter is the shortest distance between 2 people.”

I hope you get and give a lot of presents this holiday season. Recycle your smiles and re-gift the laughter.

Debra Joy Hart RN,
Certified Laughter Leader
Age Wise Care Management