The rewards of homemade gifts

 
I had one of those magical (and rare) DIY moments yesterday. A couple of hours before meeting some favorite relations for lunch, I realized that I really wanted to bring them something. Not being a person who keeps a gift drawer of tasteful, appropriate gifts at the ready I was at a loss...until I remembered the stash of strawberry freezer jam I put up over the summer. Many jars of Oregon's sweet summer berries remained. (Take that, Martha.) So I whipped up a couple of cloth bags tied up with ribbon and the kids got to work on homemade cards, which, happily, they love to make. It felt so good to hand over those homemade gifts to people we love. It made me want to do more planning for that kind of spontaneous DIY gifting. (Hmm. Planning for spontaneity? Let's go with it.)

A reader made a comment last week that has stuck with me. In response to Renee's post about staying grounded during the holidays, Susan said:

I can relate to finding myself getting caught up in the whirl of it all despite many good intentions to stay out of it, stay calm, make decisions about gifts and celebrating that are true to the values I'm working on living (like less waste, less plastic, etc)... every time I get down about my failures this year, I try to think of it as information for how to prepare for next year.

Every time I have one of these little moments, success or failure, it does feel like I'm taking mental notes for future efforts. Living mindfully is a slow process, but a joyful one. Note to self: homemade can be a rewarding for both giver and receiver. Do more of that!