I think that I am not the only one who struggle during Christmas season to make sure that my children understand that receiving presents is not what really matters during this time of the year. I try to teach them that to give is more rewarding than to receive.
Also, I try to have them understand that if a present costs more it doesn’t necessarily means that it is worth more. I noticed for example this conversation between one of my children and a friend.
“What did you get for Christmas last year ?”
“Oh, I got this jacket”
“..how much did it cost?”….
It looks like sometimes they don’t really know the value of a gift and they assume that if a present is more expensive it must be more valuable and (unfortunately) a proof that the parents love the child more.
Because of these my recurring thoughts during Christmas Season I really appreciated the LDS (Mormon) Gem I received this morning:
“The meaning of more and less is not always crystal clear. There are times when less is in reality more and times when more can be less. For instance, less pursuit of materialism may enable more family togetherness. More indulgence of children may result in less understanding of life’s important values.”
(H. David Burton, “More Holiness Give Me,” Ensign, Nov. 2004, 99)