Do you remember making the shift from a gift-getter to a gift-giver?
It happened to me in my 20s — late by some standards, for sure. One Christmas Eve I realized I was more excited about the presents I was giving than the ones I was getting. It was a good feeling, this newfound generosity. All the sappy carols and sentimental cards suddenly made sense. Like the Grinch, my small heart grew three sizes that day.
The volunteers featured in this issue and on our cover are givers, and in Northeast Ohio we’ve got a lot of them. Unlike me, they didn’t require a holiday epiphany to jump-start their generosity. Instead, they saw a need and enthusiastically stepped forward to help, donating countless hours and a dizzying array of talent.
All of them have gotten something in return for their big-heartedness, and it’s got nothing to do with money or gifts. They’ve made new friends, sharpened skills and have grown in ways they never expected. Volunteers give, get and then give again and again. All of us benefit.
I hope you’ll like reading about some of these givers (and getters) in our story on page 30. Feel free to be inspired.
In keeping with our “Give” theme this issue, we’ve got plenty of stories about how, when and where to give.
If you like to give parties, check out our story on page 20, filled with fanciful yet frugal tips to celebrate the season. Nothing says the holidays like a low-key gathering with friends and family. We’ll help you get started.
Feel like traveling? Then give yourself a road trip. Our story on page 24 offers three delightful destinations to put you in the Christmas mood. Take in the lights, cross a few items off your gift list, and enjoy the scenery — all you need is a couple of tanks of gas and a sense of adventure.
And, finally, some of you may be wondering about my chickens. (You didn’t think I’d forget, did you?) Last spring I mentioned in this column that a friend and I had ordered chicks and were raising them for eggs and pets — not necessarily in that order.
“The girls” are thriving and starting to lay eggs in their curtained nesting boxes inside their unnecessarily posh coop. Their eggs are green and various shades of brown and the very ordinary act of egg laying is a miracle in miniature. Our extraordinarily spoiled chickens are more fun than I could have imagined when they arrived in the mail last May in a small cardboard box.
You could say that our chickens — Zula, Pidge, Tink, Poodle Roo, Penny, Ola, Geraldine, Lady Gray, Fancy, Norma Jean, Charlotte, Lynda Barry and Tiny — are givers. And me, I’m a taker. The eggs taste great.
Enjoy the magazine.
