Deep Thoughts at the Dollar Tree

This afternoon while the kids were napping, I snuck off to the Dollar Tree. I'm sponsoring a mom and a 5 year old boy at a homeless shelter for a party tomorrow night. Please do not think of me as super worthy of anything, because, in case you missed it- I went to the DOLLAR TREE.
They did give us a $10 limit per person, though, so I thought this would be the best way to stretch my budget.
While I was there, I mainly ran into people who were doing their family Christmas shopping. I overheard several conversations, but the one that stuck with me most was this one:

"Look at these neat iPod covers."
"Yeah- cool- only a $1."
"Too bad I don't know anybody with an iPod."
"Me, either."

Hmmm. Until then, I kind of thought of iPods now as what a walkman would have been in middle school- a standard accessory with your Jams. We actually have 3; 5 if you count our iPhones. I didn't think of this as excessive until then. And I sulked away.
We are not "rich" by most standards, but I've found out that everything is relative. Case in point: I still think I'm young, but my babysitter has called me ma'am before. (And she promised she would NOT do it again.)
I may be quoting this stat incorrectly, but in Sunday School a while back we were talking about the average income of people around the world. In America, it's $40,000. In Africa, it's $4,000. So, on average, we Americans make 10 times more than they do. Which, in their eyes looks like $400,000 would look to someone who makes $40,000. Get the point? It's all relative.

Back to the Dollar Tree and my oversized green buggy for the undersized aisles. As I filled up this basket and made tough decisions as to how best spend my $10 (questionable generic M&Ms in a candy cane or "mock"olate looking Santa Claus pops) , I wondered if these were the only Christmas presents they would get. I wondered if my own kids would be just as happy with a bag full of Dollar Tree finds than with the hundreds of dollars of name brand, top of the line toys, clothes, games and books that await them in the playroom closet.

I want to teach them the true meaning of Christmas, but I also want them to have all the material things of Christmas. Is this possible?

Today in Sunday School we talked about living a simple life (nice guilt trip before Christmas, huh?) and how being a Christian actually is supposed to be a step towards simplicity and living like Christ. Apparently, Jesus didn't have granite countertops or 5 iPods. It's not in the Bible, so I'm not positive about that, but most scholars are going with this theory.

I've realized that I'm going to have to make a decision one way or another as to which route I want to go. Then I'm going to have to follow through with my money. Ick. I know the answer, but it is so much easier to just do what everybody else does, isn't it? It's much easier to get the STUFF than to live without and feel like you're missing out. Or explain to your kids why they don't NEED 432 Thomas trains. I think that feeling a "little less" will diminish once I fill myself more with Jesus, but I have to admit that the material things are still out there. A constant struggle with humanness.
So, if you are still shopping for me, I've decided to take a step back from materialism this Christmas (note: decision made on Dec 21st- when done with shopping). Just head over to the Dollar Tree and pick out a few iPod covers (5 to be exact) and I will be thrilled with those.